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LIFE 

IN  A  NEW  ENGLAND  TOWN: 

1787,  1788. 


DIAEY 

OF 

JOHN    QUINCY   ADAMS, 

While  a  Student  in  the  Office  of  Theopuilus  Parsons 

AT   NeWBURYPORT. 


BOSTON: 
LITTLE,  BROWN,    AND    COMPANY. 

1903. 


LIBRARY 

U'xiVERSITY  OF 
MASSACHUSETTS 

AMHERST,  MASS. 


Slnibersftg  ^xtss: 
John  Wilson  and  Son,  Cambkidge,  U.  S.  A. 


The  photogravure  prefixed  to  this  volume  is  from  a 
portrait  of  J.  Q.  Adams,  painted  in  London  by  J.  S.  Copley, 
in  the  spring  of  1796,  and  sent  by  the  artist  in  the  early  part 
of  the  following  year  as  a  present  to  John  Adams  and  his 
wife.  The  original,  belonging  to  C.  F.  Adams,  is  now  (1903) 
on  deppsit  in  the  Museum  of  Fine  Arts  in  Boston.  The  fac- 
simile of  Mr.  Adams's  signature  is  from  a  letter  written  a 
little  more  than  a  year  after  the  portrait  was  painted. 

Extracts  from  the  diary  which  follows  were  read  at  the 
stated  meeting  of  the  Massachusetts  Historical  Society  in 
November,  1902,  and  excited  much  interest.  It  was  after- 
ward printed  in  the  Proceedings  of  the  Society;  and  it  is 
now  reprinted  by  their  permission  for  wider  circulation. 


On  the  31st  of  October,  1901,  the  First  Congregational 
Church  of  Nevvburjport,  Massachusetts,  observed  its  one 
hundred  and  seventy-fifth  anniversary,. and,  also,  the  one  hun- 
dredth anniversary  of  the  dedication  of  its  meeting-house.^ 
The  pastor  of  the  Society,  the  Rev.  Samuel  C,  Beane,  D.D., 
invited  me  to  take  part  in  the  ceremonies  of  the  day  on  the 
ground  that  my  grandfather,  John  Quincy  Adams,  "  was  for 
a  few  j^ears  in  his  youth  an  interested  and  active  member  of  " 
the  Society  ;  and,  while  such,  "  he  was  in  a  great  measure 
instrumental  in  obtaining  the  settlement  of  Rev.  John  An- 
drews, his  young  Old  Colony  friend,  as  minister  [of  the 
Church,  in  which]  his  family  is  still  represented."  Not  feel- 
ing at  liberty  to  decline  an  invitation  thus  extended,  it  occurred 
to  me  I  could  best  improve  the  occasion  by  communicating  to 
those  gathered  extracts  from  the  diary  John  Quincy  Adams 
kept  during  a  portion  of  the  period  of  his  residence  at  New- 
buryport,  —  a  student  in  the  office  of  Theophilus  Parsons,  who, 
nineteen  years  later,  succeeded  Francis  Dana  as  Chief  Justice 
of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Massachusetts.  The  diary  in  question 
is  contained  in  two  small  octavo  volumes,  bound  in  calf,  bought 
in  Paris,  and  entitled  "•  Ephemeris."  It  is  the  record  of  a 
young  law  student's  daily  life,  and,  as  such,  was  kept  with 
more  or  less  detail  ;  but,  unfortunately,  it  is  not  continuous, 
covering  the  whole  of  one  year  only  (1787)  and  a  portion  of 
the  year  following.     The  first  detailed  entry  relating  to  the 

1  A  report  of  the  speeches  and  proceedings  on  this  occasion  has  since  been 
published  by  order  of  tlie  Society.  In  it  are  included  about  tliree  printed  pages 
of  the  following  diary  of  J.  Q.  Adams.  Celebration  of  the  One  Hundredth  Anni- 
versary of  the  Meeting  House  of  the  First  Religious  Society  in  Newburyport, 
October  31,  1901.    Newburyport,  1902,  pp.  61. 


6  DIAEY   OF   JOHN   QUIXCY   ADAMS. 

Newburjport  experience  is  of  August  9,  1787  ;  the  last  of 
October  14,  1788.  Mr.  Adams's  health  then  broke  down, 
as  the  result  probably  of  too  severe  application  ;  for,  in  almost 
every  entry  immediately  preceding  his  illness,  he  complains 
bitterly  of  insomnia,  lying  awake  at  times  whole  nights, 
and  at  other  times  getting  sleep  only  through  the  use  of 
opiates. 

Though  I  found  in  this  record  much  which  greatly  inter- 
ested me,  no  use  whatever  was  made  of  it  by  my  father  in 
his  publication  entitled  "•  Memoirs  of  J.  Q.  Adams  "  ;  for  it 
contains  little  of,  so-called,  historical  value.  It  nevertheless 
gives  a  curious  and  graphic  picture  of  social,  every-day 
existence  in  a  small  Massachusetts  seaport  during  the  closing 
years  of  the  eighteenth  century.  Its  maturity  of  tone  is 
perhaps  its  most  noticeable  feature ;  but,  in  reading  it,  it 
is  well  to  bear  constantly  in  mind  that  not  only  was  the  writer 
an  exceptional  character,  but  his  experience  had  been  so  very 
unusual  as  to  be  even  yet  almost,  if  indeed  not  altogether, 
unique.  Born  and  brought  up  as  a  boy  in  an  eighteenth- 
century  Massachusetts  country  town,  in  the  midst  of  our 
revolutionary  troubles,  he  accompanied  his  father  to  Europe, 
still  lacking  five  months  of  his  eleventh  birthday,  when,  one 
February  morning,  the  two  took  boat  .from  the  beach  at 
Braintree,  for  the  frigate  "  Boston,"  lying  in  the  offing.  Sent 
to  school  near  Paris,  he  there  became  proficient  in  French. 
On  this  point  we  get  an  amusing  as  well  as  suggestive  glimpse 
of  him  from  the  diary  of  John  Adams,  kept  during  the  return 
from  his  first  mission  to  France  in  1779.  At  this  time  J.  Q. 
Adams  was  not  quite  twelve  years  old.  He  had  been  in 
France  some  fourteen  months,  and  was  returning  home  with 
his  father  on  the  French  frigate  "  Sensible,"  in  company  with 
La.  Luzerne,  the  commissioner  from  Louis  XVI.  to  the  Con- 
gress, and  M.  Marbois,  the  secretary  of  the  commission. 
Writing  when  three  days  at  sea,  under  date  of  Sunday,  the 
20th  June,  John  Adams  says:  "The  Chevalier  de  la  Luzerne 
and  M.  Marbois  are  in  raptures  with  my  son.  They  get  him 
to  teach  them  the  language.  I  found  tliis  morning  the  Am- 
bassador seated  on  the  cushion  in  our  state-room,  M.  Marbois 
in  his  cot,  at  his  left  hand,  and  my  son  stretched  out  in  his, 
at  his  right.  The  Ambassador  reading  out  loud,  in  Black- 
stone's  Discourse  at  his  entrance  on  his  Professorship  of  the 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  7 

Common  Law  at  the  University,  and  my  son  correcting  the 
pronunciation  of  every  word  and  syllable  and  letter.  The 
Ambassador  said  he  was  astonished  at  my  son's  knowledge ; 
that  he  was  a  master  of  his  own  language,  like  a  professor. 
M.  Marbois  said.  Your  son  teaches  us  more  than  you  ;  he  has 
poi7it  de  grace,  point  cTcloges.  He  shows  us  no  mercy,  and 
makes  us  no  compliments.     We  must  have  Mr.  John." 

Getting  safely  back  to  America  and  the  Braintree  envi- 
ronment early  in  August,  1779,  about  three  months  later 
John  Adams  again  embarked  for  Europe,  and  again  on  the 
"  Sensible  "  ;  this  time  accompanied  by  two  of  his  sons,  John 
Quincy  and  Charles,  the  latter  only  nine  years  old.  They 
returned  to  France  by  way  of  Spain,  and  J.  Q.  Adams  now 
remained  six  years  in  Europe;  during  which  time,  besides 
being  at  school  and  college,  he  associated  in  confidential 
capacities  with  men  of  distinction  much  older  than  himself, 
in  Holland,  Russia  and  France.  He  saw  also  a  good  deal  of 
both  Franklin  and  Jefferson,  especially  the  latter,  for  whom 
he  entertained  a  strong  boyish  admiration.  At  fourteen  he 
was  a  student  in  the  University  of  Leyden,  of  which  institu- 
tion he  always  afterwards  spoke  with  deep  affection.  More 
than  fifty  years  later,  referring  to  this  period,  he  wrote : 
"  There  is  a  character  of  romantic  wildness  about  the  memory 
of  my  travels  in  Europe  from  1778  to  1785,  which  gives  to  it 
a  tinge  as  if  it  was  the  recollection  of  something  in  another 
world.  Life  was  new,  everything  was  surprising,  everything 
carried  with  it  a  deep  interest.  It  is  almost  surprising  to  me 
now  that  I  escaped  from  the  fascination  of  Europe's  attrac- 
tions. .  .  .  My  return  home  from  Auteuil,  leaving  my  father 
when  he  was  going  upon  his  mission  to  England,  decided  the 
fate  and  fortunes  of  my  after-life.  It  was  my  own  choice, 
and  the  most  judicious  choice  I  ever  made.  My  short  dis- 
cipline of  fifteen  months  at  Harvard  University  was  the  intro- 
duction to  all  the  prosperity  that  has  ever  befallen  me,  and 
perhaps  saved  me  from  early  ruin";  and  afterwards  (1840) 
when  philosophizing  in  his  diary,  in  extremely  despondent 
mood,  over  his  own  life  and  the  results  thereof,  he  wrote 
again,  it  was  to  "  Harvard  College,  Leyden  University,  seven 
years  of  youthful  travel  and  the  blessing  of  heaven  "  that  he 
attributed  whatever  of  useful  it  had  been  given  to  him  to 
accomplish. 


8  DIARY  OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAJ^IS. 

Graduating  at  Harvard,  in  1787,  the  volumes  of  diary  cover- 
ing student  life  at  Newburjport  open  immediately  thereafter. 
From  one  of  these  volumes  I  made  a  number  of  extracts  for 
use  at  the  Newburyport  church  anniversary  of  31st  Octo- 
ber ;  but  these  extracts  proved  far  too  voluminous  to  find  a 
place  in  the  printed  report  of  what  then  occurred.  Another 
portion  I  subsequently  communicated  to  the  Massachusetts 
Historical  Society  at  its  November  meeting,  1902.  I  then  put 
the  two  volumes  covering  the  Newburyport  period  in  the  hands 
of  Mr.  C.  C.  Smith,  the  editor  of  the  Society,  with  permission 
to  make  such  use  of  their  contents  as  he  saw  fit.  It  was  the 
daily  record  of  a  young  man  just  out  of  college.  Having 
passed  the  period  between  eleven  and  eighteen  in  a  curiously 
diversified  and  roving  life  in  the  Europe  of  Louis  XVI.,  Cath- 
erine II.  and  George  III.,  he  had  then  been  suddenly  trans- 
ferred at  his  own  volition  to  America,  where  at  twenty  he  had 
graduated  at  Harvard.  The  salient  features  of  his  college  days, 
as  recorded  in  this  diary,  have  already  found  their  way  into 
print.i  The  record  of  subsequent  law-student  life  at  New- 
buryport was  thought  by  Mr.  Smith  to  be  of  sufficient  interest 
to  justify  reproduction  in  full  in  the  volumes  of  Proceedings  of 
the  Historical  Society.     This  publication  resulted. 

It  is  merely  necessary  to  add  that,  between  1787  and  1790, 
Newburyport,  a  substantial  seaport  of  some  five  thousand  in- 
habitants, was  largely  engaged  in  commerce.  As  a  commu- 
nity, it  was  made  up  of  people  — men  and  women  —  of  the  old 
New  England  type.  While  distinctly  provincial,  the  place  had 
not  3'et  become  suburban  ;  it  had  an  individuality.  Socially, 
no  less  than  commercially  and  financially,  it  was  a  local  centre. 
The  period  was  critical.  The  country  had  emerged  from  the 
revolutionary  troubles  only  a  few  years  before,  and  was  still  in 
the  formative  stage.  The  land  was  poor,  and  those  dwelling  in 
it  were  burdened  by  taxation.  Hence  the  spirit  of  unrest  was 
great ;  crude  theories  of  money,  government,  and  the  rights  of 
man  were  in  the  air,  and  it  yet  remained  to  be  seen  whether 
the  people  of  Anglo-Saxon  descent  in  America  were  to  prove 
equal  to  the  occasion  and  develop  into  a  nationality,  or 
whether,  victims  of  a  morbid  jealousy  of  all  centralized  au- 
thority, they   were  to  sink  into  a  state  of  clironic  anarchy. 

1  North  American  Review,  vol.  cxiv.  pp.  110-147.  Harvard  College,  1786- 
1787.     Henry  Adams,  Historical  Essays,  pp.  80-121. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  9 

Shays's  Rebellion  had  broken  out  in  Massachusetts  only  a  few 
months  before  this  diary  opsns ;  the  Convention  which  framed 
the  Federal  Constitution  was  then  sitting  at  Philadelphia ; 
John  Hancock  was  Governor  of  Massachusetts  ;  but  not  for 
two  years  yet  was  Washington  chosen  President.  In  Europe, 
France  was  on  the  eve  of  the  Revolution,  and,  on  May  5, 1789, 
the  States  General  met  at  Versailles  ;  on  the  14th  of  July  fol- 
lowing the  Bastille  was  stormed  ;  William  Pitt  was  then  Prime 
Minister  of  Great  Britain  ;  the  trial  of  Warren  Hastings  was  in 
progress;  Frederick  the  Great  had  been  only  a  twelvemonth 
dead  ;  and  the  future  Emperor  of  the  French  was  hanging 
about  Paris,  an  impecunious  Lieutenant  of  Artillery,  vainly 
seeking  financial  relief  for  his  father  from  a  bankrupt  and 
sinking  goverin-nent.  So  far  as  the  writer  of  the  diary  himself 
was  concerned,  his  father  had,  in  1787,  been  eight  years  in 
Europe,  and  his  mother  and  sister  three  years.  In  1785  they 
had  passed  over  from  France  to  England,  and  since  then  John 
Adams  had  represented  the  Federation  near  the  Court  of  St. 
James.  During  the  period  covered  by  his  son's  residence  at 
Newburyport  he  returned  to  America  to  assume  the  duties  of 
Vice-President  in  the  first  administration  of  Washington. 
Finally,  at  the  time  covered  by  this  diary,  Boston,  not  yet  a 
city,  numbered  some  eighteen  thousand  inhabitants,  and  Cam- 
bridge a  little  over  two  thousand.  The  town  of  Quincy  had 
not  yet  been  incorporated,  but  was  still  the  North  Precinct  of 
Braintree,  the  birthplace  of  the  writer  of  the  diary.  It  num- 
bered a  population  a  little  short  of  three  thousand. 

While  some  insignilicant  portions  of  the  diary  have  been 
omitted  either  because  the  events  recorded  were  too  trivial  or 
commonplace  to  merit  publication,  or  because  they  related  to 
matters  of  student  life  and  intercourse  now  of  interest  to  no 
one,  the  record  is  noticeably  devoid  of  anything  of  a  scan- 
dalous or  prurient  nature,  or  of  allusions  which  the  most  sen- 
sitive of  descendants  would  seek  to  suppress.  In  these  respects 
it  is  throughout  thoroughly  healthy,  as  well  as  creditable  to 
the  writer.!  C    F   A 

1  Acknowledgment  is  here  due  to  Miss  J.  C.  "Watts  ("Radcliffe,  1897)  for 
assistance  in  the  preparation  of  tiie  notes.  Thoroughly  trained  and  indefati- 
gable in  research,  she  has  succeeded  in  throwing  a  flood  of  light  on  people  and 
events  which  had  passed  wholly  out  of  living  memory. 


DIARY. 


August  9th,  1787.1 

I  breakfasted  tliis  morning  with  Mr.  Andrews,'  and  after  breakfast 
called  upon  Jack  Forbes ;  **   in  their  company  I  passed  my  time  away 

1  Two  entries  of  an  earlier  date  are  of  interest  in  connection  with  J.  Q.  Adams's 
life  in  Newburyport :  — 

Sunday,  June  10,  1787 :  "  .  .  .  Dined  at  Mr.  Dana's,  in  company  with  Mr. 
Parsons  of  Newbury -Port ;  a  man  of  great  wit,  as  well  as  of  sound  judgment 
and  deep  learning." 

June  '2o,  1787  :  "  ]\Ir.  Cranch  and  Dr.  Tufts  came  from  Boston  this  afternoon 
—  the  doctor  informs  me  that  Mr.  Parsons  has  agreed  to  receive  me;  and  conse- 
quently I  expect  to  go  in  August  or  Septeml)er  to  Newbury-Port." 

Francis  Dana  was  appointed  a  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Massachusetts 
in  1785;  Chief  Justice  in  1791.  As  Secretary  of  Legation,  lie  had  sailed  from 
America  with  Jolm  Adams  and  his  son  in  1779 ;  and  when  subsequently  appointed 
to  a  mission  at  St.  Petersburg,  he  took  J.  Q.  Adams,  a  lad  of  fourteen,  with 
him  as  his  private  secretary.     See  J.  Q.  Adams,  Memoirs,  vol.  i.  pp.  10,  12. 

March  10,  1787,  J.  Q.  Adams  wrote  in  his  diary  :  "  Soon  after  prayers  I 
heard  with  equal  grief  and  surprise  that  Judge  Dana  was  seized  with  an  apo- 
plectic and  paraletic  fit,  on  Thursday  in  the  forenoon  :  that  his  life  was  for  some 
time  despaired  of,  and  that  he  is  still  in  a  very  dangerous  situation.  To  me  he 
has  been  a  second  father,  and  his  instructious,  though  too  mucli  neglected  at 
the  time  when  he  gave  them,  have  since  been  more  attended  to;  and  have  at 
least  check'd  some  of  my  failings,  and  were  calculated  to  reform  them  entirely. 
I  have  therefore  reason  to  revere  him  in  a  peculiar  manner :  but  a  man  of  his 
talents  and  virtues,  fihing  one  of  tiie  most  important  offices  in  the  State,  is 
precious  to  the  whole  Commonwealth ;  and  should  his  disease  prove  fatal,  his 
loss  will  not  be  easily  repaired. 

"  11th.  ...  in  the  evening  I  went  down  to  Judge  Dana's,  but  did  not  see  him : 
the  president  [Willard]  was  there,  stiff  as  ever.  Mr.  Dana  had  a  second  attack 
last  night;  but  not  so  violent  as  the  first :  they  have  some  hopes  and  many  fears 
with  respect  to  his  recovery." 

As  respects  Theopliilus  Parsons,  compare  the  characterization  by  Daniel 
"Webster  m  1804,  in  F.  Webster,  Private  Correspondence  of  Daniel  Webster, 
vol.  i.  p.  183. 

Dr.  Cotton  Tufts,  an  erudite  and  public-spirited  physician  of  Weymouth,  was 
at  this  time  in  his  fifty-seventh  year.  lie  had  married  Lucy  Quincy,  sister  of 
Mrs.  Elizabeth  Q.  Smitli,  maternal  aunt  of  Mrs.  Abigail  Adams.  When  absent  as 
minister  to  England,  John  Adams  left  his  business  aflfairs  in  the  care  of  Dr. 


-  John  Andrews  (II.  C.  178G),  a  native  of  Hingham,  then  (1787)  a  student  of 
Divinity  at  Cambridge;  later  jmstor  of  tlie  First  Parish  Church  of  Newbury- 
port for  over  forty  years  ;  died  August  17,  1845.  See  tlie  histories  of  Newbury- 
port. 

3  John  Murray  Forbes^  classmate  of  J.  Q.  Adams.     See  infra,  p.  58  note.    ■" 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  11 

till  near  eleven  o'clock.  I  then  mountecl,  and  after  stopping  a  few 
minutes  at  Medford,^  I  proceeded,  and  at  about  two,  arrived  at  the  tavern 
in  Wilmington;  where  I  found  my  two  brothers^  who  were  returning 
from  Haverhill,  both  of  them  much  pleased  with  their  tour.  Between 
four  and  live  we  parted,  they  went  towards  Cambridge  and  I  came  on  to 
Haverhill,  where  I  arrived,  at  about  eight  in  the  evening.  .  .  . 

11th.  This  forenoon,  I  took  a  ride  with  Mr.  Shaw,^  to  see  my 
classmate  Welch,*  who  lives  about  four  miles  from  hence.  After  I 
returned,  I  called  in,  at  Mr.  Bartlett's,^  where  I  found  Mr.  and  Mrs. 

Tufts.  Under  date  of  June  2,  1786,  he  wrote  to  him:  "A  year  will  soon  be 
about,  and  wliat  are  we  to  do  then  with  John  1  What  lawyer  shall  we  desire  to 
take  liim,  in  town  or  country  1  and  what  sum  must  be  given  with  him'?  and 
what  will  his  board  and  clothing  cost?  and  where  shall  we  get  money  to  pay  all 
these  expens^es  ?  Shall  I  come  home  and  take  all  my  boys  into  my  own  oftice  1 
I  was  once  thought  to  have  a  tolerable  knack  at  making  lawyers,  and  now  could 
save  a  large  sum  by  it." 

See  John  Adams,  Works,  vol.  ix.  pp.  548,  549,  556.  See  also  Appleton, 
Cyclopaedia  of  American  Biography  ;  J.  Thacher,  American  Medical  Biograpliy, 
vol.  ii.  pp.  149-152;  Letters  of  Mrs.  Abigail  Adams  (1848),  pp.  26,  51,  125; 
J.  Q.  Adams,  Memoirs,  vol.  viii.  p.  385;  vol.  xi.  p.  878. 

Richard  Cranch,  of  Braintree,  was  the  husband  of  the  elder  sister  of  Mrs. 
Abigail  Adams.  Born  (1726)  in  Devon,  England,  he  came  to  Massachusetts  in 
1746,  was  a  Representative  from  Braintree  to  the  State  Legislature  in  1779,  re- 
ceived the  honorary  degree  of  Master  of  Arts  from  Harvard  in  1780,  and  was 
now  (1787)  a  judge  of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas  for  Suffolk  County;  he 
died  October  16,  1811.  W.  T.  Davis,  History  of  the  Judiciary  of  Massachusetts, 
p.  216;  Letters  of  Mrs.  Abigail  Adams  (1818),  pp.  xxviii,  125;  John  Adams, 
Works ;  Fleet's  Almanack  for  1787  ;  C.  F.  Adams,  Three  Episodes  of  Massachu- 
setts History,  p.  904. 

1  Dr.  Tufts  was  born  in  Medford.  and  his  relatives  still  lived  there. 

2  Charles  Adams  (H.  C.  1789),  second  son  of  John  Adams,  born  1770;  subse- 
quently a  lawyer  in  New  York  City ;  died  there  in  1800.  Thomas  Boylston 
Adams  (H.  C.  1790),  born  1772;  married  Ann  Harrod,  of  Haverhill;  Representa- 
tive from  Quincy  to  the  State  Legislature,  1805-1806  ;  was  cliosen  a  member  of 
Governor  Gerry's  Council  in  May,  1811;  was  Chief  Justice  of  the  Court  of 
Common  Pleas  for  the  Southern  Circuit,  which  included  Norfolk,  Plymouth, 
Bristol,  and  Barnstable  counties,  1811-1819;  died  in  1832.  Both  were  at  this 
time  students  at  Harvard,  the  one  a  Junior  and  the  otlier  a  Sophomore;  they 
had  been  visiting  Mrs.  Shaw,  their  maternal  aunt,  at  Haverhill. 

3  Rev.  John  Shaw  (H.  C.  1772),  son  of  the  Rev.  John  Shaw,  of  Bridgewater; 
ordained  in  1777  ;  settled  at  Haverhill ;  died  in  1794.  Mrs.  Shaw  was  Miss 
Elizabeth  Smltli,  sister  of  Mrs.  Abigail  Adams,  —  a  cultured  and  cliarming 
woman.  J.  Q.  Adams  was  prepared  for  Harvard  College  in  the  house  of  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Shaw,  and  always  regarded  her  with  affectionate  veneration,  as  "one 
of  the  earliest  and  kindest  friends  and  guardians  of  my  childhood."  See  N.  E. 
Hist,  and  Gen.  Reg.,  vol.  xlviii.  pp.  179-181;  J.  Q.  Adams,  Memoirs,  vol.  xii. 
p.  275;  Hurd,  Hist,  of  Essex  County,  p.  2005. 

4  Francis  Welch,  born  May  31, 1766,  at  Plaistow,  N.  H. ;  June  3, 1789,  ordained 
pastor  of  tlie  West  Parish  in  Amesbury  ;  died  December  15,  1793.  Hurd,  Hist, 
of  Essex  County,  p.  1516. 

s  Probably  Bailey  Bartlett ;  see  infra,  p.  17  note. 


12  DIAKY  OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

Dalton,^  with  their  two  eldest  daughters,  and  Miss  Hazen.  They  all 
dined  at  Mr.  White's,^  and  in  the  afternoon  all  returned  to  Mr. 
Dalton's  seat  at  Newtown.  The  eldest  daughter  is  very  much  as  she 
was  two  years  ago,  blooming  as  a  rose,  and,  they  say,  in  a  fair  way 
to  be  married.  The  younger  has  grown  since  I  last  saw  her,  and 
appears  to  better  advantage.  Miss  Ilazen  appears  to  have  altered  but 
very  little  since  the  time  when  I  lived  here  with  her :  she  is  indeed 
now  two  years  older,  and  must  necessarily  possess  more  prudence  and 
steadiness  ;  but  her  manners  are  still  the  same.  I  passed  the  evening 
with  White  ^  and  returned  home  just  before  nine. 

12th.   Mr.  Tappan  *  from  Newbury  preach'd  here  the  whole  day. 

1  Tristram  Dalton,  classmate  of  John  Adams  at  Harvard,  a  wealthy  and 
cultured  merchant  at  Newburyport,  active  in  political  hfe.  Pie  had  been  a 
Representative  and  Senator  in  the  State  Legislature,  and  Speaker  of  tiie  House  ; 
later,  in  1789,  lie  was  the  first  United  States  Senator  from  Massacliusetts.  The 
younger  Miss  Dalton  married  Leonard  Wliite  August  21,  1794.  In  addition  to  a 
fine  town  house  (which  is  still  standing  on  State  Street  in  Newburyport,  the 
headquarters  of  the  Dalton  Club)  Tristram  Dalton  possessed  tliis  summer  home 
in  Newtown,  now  West  Newbury.  It  was  beautifully  situated  in  the  midst  of 
some  two  hundred  acres,  about  four  miles  from  Newburyport,  on  the  road  to 
Haverhill,  at  the  summit  of  Pipe  Stave  Hill,  whence,  a  traveller  of  tliat  day 
writes,  eighteen  church  steeples  were  in  view.  See  J.  J.  Currier,  "Quid  New- 
bury," pp.  .339-346,  475-483.  Tlie  view  of  the  Merrimack  from  Pipe  Stave  Hill, 
a  view  of  his  town  house,  and  a  portrait  of  Tristram  Dalton  himself  are  repro- 
duced tliere.     See  also  E.  F.  Stone,  Sketch  of  Tristram  Dalton. 

2  John  White,  father  of  Leonard  White  (classmate  of  J.  Q.  Adams),  was  one 
of  the  wealthiest  merchants  in  Haverhill,  and  dwelt  in  a  "large  three-story  man- 
sion "  on  Water  Street,  "one  of  the  most  imposing  and  costly  dwellings  in  the 
region,"  with  a  terraced  front  yard  with  trellised  fence  and  a  deep  garden  in  the 
rear  with  boxwood  bordered  walks.     See  Chase,  Hist,  of  Haverhill,  p.  451. 

3  Leonard  White,  classmate  of  J.  Q.  Adams,  was  prepared  for  college  by  the 
Rev.  John  Shaw  in  company  with  J.  Q.  Adams  and  William  Cranch.  J.  Q.  Adams 
writes  in  his  diary,  June  8,  1787  :  "  Leonard  White  of  Haverhill  was  twenty  the 
Sd  of  last  month.  I  lived  at  Haverhill  some  time,  and,  as  he  chums  with  my  cousin, 
I  was  acquainted  with  him  before  I  came  to  the  University,  and  have  been  very 
intimate  with  him  since ;  his  natural  abilities,  without  being  very  great,  are  such 
as  will  enable  him  to  go  through  life  with  honour,  and  his  disposition  is  amiable. 
His  virtues  are  numerous,  but  among  them  all  modesty  is  the  most  conspicuous. 
I  never  knew  any  other  person  so  intimately  as  I  am  acquainted  with  him,  with- 
out having  perceived  iu  him  some  sparks  of  vanity ;  but  I  believe  he  never 
experienced  the  feeling.  A  remarkable  neatness  of  person  is  likewise  one  of  his 
characteristics,  and  is  the  more  extraordinary  because  he  has  so  few  imitators 
here.  He  has  so  much  candor  that  I  never  heard  him  speak  ill  of  any  one  of 
his  classmates,  and  very  seldom  of  any  one  ;  his  defects  are  only  trivial  foibles, 
and  he  will  certainly  be  an  useful  member  of  society."  Leonard  White  served 
on  the  Haverhill  school  committee  and  as  town  clerk  and  treasurer;  was  in  the 
Legislature  in  1809;  a  member  of  Congress,  1811-1813;  cashier  of  the  Merri- 
mack Bank  for  a  quarter  of  a  century.  He  died  in  October,  1849,  in  his  eighty- 
third  year.     See  Hurd,  Hist,  of  Essex  County,  pp.  2002,  2011,  2012. 

*  Rev.  David  Tappan  (H.  C.  1771),  born  in  Manchester  April  21,  1752;  a 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  13 

Both  his  sermons  were  doctrinal,  but  very  ingenious.  This  gentleman 
is  much  celebrated  in  this  part  of  the  country,  for  his  abilities,  both 
natural  and  acquired.  I  was  much  pleased  with  the  little  conversation 
I  had  with  him  in  the  course  of  the  day ;  but  his  public  speaking  is  far 
from  being  graceful.  Elocution  indeed  has  not  till  very  lately  been 
considered  as  claiming  a  right  to  much  attention  in  the  education  of 
youth  ;  and  consequently  tliere  are  but  very  few  preachers  who  had 
finished  their  education  before  the  last  war  that  make  any  figure  at  all 
as  speakers ;  and  even  those  who  are  acknowledged  to  be  men  of  great 
genius  and  learning  are  with  respect  to  the  delivery  far  inferior  to 
manv  modern  preachers  who  have  not  half  their  talents. 

13th,  I  intended  to  have  gone  this  day  to  Newbury-Port,  but  the 
weather  was  so  excessively  warm,  that  I  determined  this  morning  to 
omit  going  till  to-morrow.  I  paid  a  visk  to  Judge  Sargeant^  in  the 
forenoon  and  spent  a  couple  of  hours  there  ;  conversed  upon  political 
subjects.  Saw  Mr.  Thaxter  a  few  minutes.  After  dinner  I  went  with 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Shaw  to  see  my  classmate  Eaton ;  ^  but  he  was  not  at 
home.  On  our  return  we  stop'd  at  Parson  Adams's,^  but  neither  was 
he  to  be  found,  so  that  we  then  came  home,  and  I  passed  the  evening 
with  my  uncle. 

14th.  It  was  so  warm  again  this  day  that  I  did  not  set  out  from 
Haverhill  till  between  three  and  four  in  the  afternoon.     On  the  road  I 

classmate  of  Dr.  John  B.  Swett,  of  Newburyport,  at  Harvard ;  settled  over  the 
Second  Church  in  West  Newbury  April  18,  1774  ;  appointed  HoUis  Professor  of 
Divinity  at  Harvard  in  1792;  died  August  27,  1803.  See  Coffin,  Hist,  of  New- 
bury, pp.  371,  etc. 

1  Nathaniel  Peaslee  Sargeant  (H.  C.  1750),  a  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court 
of  Massachusetts  (1775-1790),  its  Chief  Justice  (1790-1791).  See  Hurd,  Hist, 
of  Essex  County,  p.  2003 ;  J.  Adams,  Works,  vol.  ix.  p.  390. 

2  Peter  Eaton  was  born  in  the  West  Parisli  of  Haverliill  March  15,  1765:  was 
a  pupil  at  Phillips  Andover  Academy  ;  studied  for  the  ministry  under  liis  pastor. 
Dr.  Phineas  Adams  ;  was  settled  over  the  church  at  Boxford  for  fifty-five  years 
(1789-1845).  March  24,  1787,  J.  Q.  Adams  wrote:  "I  have  not  the  pleasure  of 
an  intimate  acquaintance  with  him,  but  all  those  who  have  speak  well  of  him. 
As  a  speaker  he  is  distinguished,  and  as  a  scholar  respectable ;  his  public  exer- 
cises have  been  in  general  equal  if  not  superior  to  any  in  the  class  since  I 
belonged  to  it ;  but  he  is  very  modest  and  diffident,  so  that  he  has  not  brought 
himself  so  much  into  notice  as  several  others  in  the  class,  who  without  his  abili- 
ties liave  a  much  greater  share  of  confidence."  See  W.  B.  Sprague,  Annals  of 
the  American  Pulpit,  vol.  viii.  pp.  222-226;  Chase,  Hist,  of  Haverhill,  p.  630; 
Hurd,  Hist  of  Essex  County,  p.  2012. 

3  Rev.  Phineas  Adams  (H.  C.  1762),  a  classmate  of  Judge  Dana  at  Harvard, 
born  in  Rowley  March  14,  1742;  an  acceptable  pastor  to  the  somewhat  discord- 
ant West  Parish  of  Haverhill  from  1771  until  his  death  in  1801.  The  parish  had 
secured  the  dismissal  of  one  pastor  for  heresy  and  made  three  unsuccessful 
attempts  to  fill  the  pulpit  before  Mr.  Adams  went  there ;  after  his  death  it 
remained  for  twenty-five  years  without  a  settled  pastor.  Chase,  Hist,  of  Haver- 
hUl,  pp.  567-570. 


14  DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

met  at  different  times  Mr.  Tappan,  Stedman,  and  Thompson,^  and  Tom 
Hoopei-.  1  arrived  at  Mr.  Tufts's  in  Newbury-Port,  just  before  sun- 
set. I  did  not  enter  the  town  with  the  most  favorable  impressions. 
About  three  weeks  hence  I  am  to  become  an  inhabitant  of  the  place. 
Withour,  friends  or  connections,  I  am  to  stand  on  my  own  ground,  and 
am  in  all  probability  to  live  here  three  years  ;  whether  agreeably  or 
not  time  only  must  discover ;  but  the  presages  within  my  breast  are 
not  such  as  I  should  wish  realized. 

loth.    In  the  forenoon  I  went  to  see  Mr.   Parsons,^  and  inform'd 

1  William  Stedman  (H.  C.  1784)  and  Thomas  W.  Thompson  (H.  C.  1786) 
were  students  iu  the  law  office  of  Theopliilus  Parsons. 

William  Stedman,  born  in  Cambridge,  opened  his  law  office  in  Lancaster ; 
died  in  1831.  When  J.  Q.  Adams  was  a  member  of  tiie  national  Senate,  William 
Stedman  was  in  the  House  of  Representatives  (1803-1810),  and  lodged  with 
J.  Q.  Adams's  colleague,  Timothy  Pickering.  It  is  probable  that  their  relations 
were  not  then  altogether  cordial,  as,  a  few  weeks  after  his  arrival,  J.  Q.  Adams 
heard  from  his  cousin,  William  Siiaw,  that  William  Stedman  was  t!ie  writer 
of  a  letter  to  the  "  Centinel "  criticising  very  severely  his  attitude  to  the  Louisiana 
question,  etc.,  and  ending  with  this  summary  of  J.  Q.  Adams's  course  thus  far, 

"Quis  talia  fando 
Temperet  a  lachrymis." 
See  the  "  Centinel  "  for  December  10,  1803 ;  Memoirs,  vol.  i.  p.  291. 

Thomas  W.  Thompson,  son  of  Deacon  Thomas  Thompson,  of  Newbury;  born 
March  15,  170(3  ;  prepared  for  college  at  Dummer  Academy  ;  graduated  from 
Harvard  in  1786;  was  apparently  the  most  popular  man  in  his  class  ("The 
class  are  rather  disappointed  by  the  absence  of  their  favorite  Thomson,  who  is 
so  unwell  as  prevented  him  ft-om  appearing  this  day,"  diary  of  J.  Q.  Adams, 
Commencement  Day,  July  19,  1786) ;  served  as  aid  to  General  Lincoln  during 
Shays's  Rebellion;  now  (1787)  a  law  student  in  Mr.  Parsons's  office.  He  was  a 
tutor  at  Harvard  1789-1791  ;  resumed  his  law  studies  with  Mr.  Parsons ;  began 
the  practice  of  law  in  Salisbury,  N.  H.,  in  1794;  postmaster  at  Salisbury  ;  solici- 
tor of  the  coimty  in  1802;  a  member  of  Congress  in  1805;  represented  Salisbury 
in  the  General  Court  in  1807  and  1808;  was  chosen  State  treasurer  in  1809; 
removed  to  Concord  ;  represented  Concord  in  the  Legislature  for  four  years  from 
1811,  being  Speaker  of  the  House  the  last  two  years ;  was  elected  United  States 
Senator  for  three  years  in  1814 ;  and  was  again  a  member  of  the  State  Legisla- 
ture. He  was  a  trustee  of  Dartmouth  College  1801-1821;  he  died  October, 
1821.  Daniel  Webster  began  his  law  studies  in  Mr.  Thompson's  office.  See  J. 
Q.  Adams,  Memoirs,  vol.  viii.  p.  118;  also  F.  Webster,  Private  Correspondence 
of  Daniel  Webster,  vol.  i.  pp.  188-190,  for  a  letter  by  Mr.  Thompson  written  in 
1804,  the  letter  of  a  busy,  active,  kindly  man ;  C.  II.  Bell,  Bench  and  Bar  of 
New  Hampshire,  pp.  688,  689 ;  "  Harvard  College,  1786-1787,"  in  H.  Adams, 
Historical  Fssays,  p.  112. 

2  Theo])hilus  Parsons,  later  Chief  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Massachu- 
setts, a  son  of  the  Rev.  Moses  Parsons,  was  born  in  the  neighboring  parish  of 
Byfield  (the  old  parsonage  is  still  standing)  ;  educated  at  Dummer  Academy  and 
Harvard  College  (1769).  Then  (1787)  a  man  of  thirty-seven,  with  some  thirteen 
years'  experience  at  the  bar,  several  young  men  of  promise  had  gone  forth  from 
his  office  in  the  low  house  that  still  stands  on  State  Street;  — the  most  note- 
worthy, perhaps,  was  Rufiis  King,  at  this  time  (1787)  a  member  of  the  Constitu- 
tional Convention  at  Philadelphia. 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  15 

Inm  that  I  should  probably  attend  at  his  office  in  about  three  weeks. 
Stedman  and  Thomson  are  tliere  now,  but  the  former  of  these  will 
leave  the  office  by  the  latter  end  of  next  month.  My  classmate 
Putnam  ^  has  applied  for  admission,  and  intends,  I  am  told,  to  enter  the 
office  in  November.  Two  at  once  would  be  full  sufficient,  but  if  there 
are  half  a  dozen  it  cannot  be  helped.  I  went,  accompanied  by  Stedman, 
and  paid  a  visit  to  Miss  Jones,  the  young  lady  who  was  at  Mr.  Wiggles- 
worth's  -  when  Bridge^  and  I  boarded  there  last  winter.  She  looks 
very  unwell,  and  they  fear  she  is  in  a  consumption.  Dined  at  Mr. 
Tufts's,  and  soon  after  dinner  I  went  to  see  my  friend  and  classmate 
Little.'^     I  found  Thomson  there,  but  he  soon  after  proceeded  on  hia 

1  Samuel  Putnam,  of  Danvers,  then  an  immature  youth  of  twenty,  later  a 
Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Massachusetts  for  twenty-eight  years.  See 
Appleton's  Cycloprcdia  of  American  Biography,  etc. 

2  Edward  Wigglesworth  (H.  C.  1749),  HoUis  Professor  of  Divinity,  1765-1791, 
His  daugliter  Margaret,  the  Miss  Wigglesworth  mentioned  below,  born  December 
28,  1706,  married  llev.  John  Andrews  September  8,  1789,  and  lived  thereafter 
in  Newburyport. 

3  J.  Q.  Adams  and  his  classmate  James  Bridge  boarded  at  Professor  "Wiggles- 
worth's  during  an  eight  weeks'  vacation  due  to  lack  of  fuel  at  the  University. 
See  Henry  Adams,  Historical  Essays,  pp.  93,  94.  On  pages  80-122  of  Mr. 
Adams's  volume,  in  an  essay  entitled  ''  Harvard  College  1786-1787,"  free  quota- 
tions are  made  from  the  diary  of  J.  Q.  Adams  for  that  period.     See  infra,  p.  148. 

*  Moses  Little,  born  in  Newbury  July  4,  1766 ;  died  in  Salem  October  13, 
1811.  J.  Q.  Adams  wrote,  under  date  of  May  9,  1787,  "  Great  application,  joined 
to  very  good  natural  abilities,  place  him  in  the  first  line  in  the  class  as  a  scholar ; 
he  has  been  attentive  to  all  tiiose  parts  of  science  which  are  pursued  here,  and  in 
all  he  has  made  considerable  proficiency.  As  a  speaker  he  is  inferior  to  several, 
but  his  composition  is  perhaps  rather  too  flowery  ;  to  a  large  share  of  ambition 
he  unites  great  modesty,  and  he  has  the  peculiar  talent  of  being  favour'd  by  the 
government  of  the  College  without  losing  his  popularity  with  his  classmates. 
His  disposition  must  of  course  be  amiable ;  he  seldom  contradicts  the  opinions  of 
any  one,  yet  when  he  is  obliged  to  declare  his  own  sentiments,  he  can  show  that 
he  thinks  for  himself;  but  notwithstanding  all  his  good  qualities  he  is  some- 
times censured,  and  such  is  the  instability  of  all  populaces  that  a  small  trifle 
might  induce  two-thirds  of  the  class  to  deny  the  improvements  and  the  abilities 
even  of  this  person."  Compare  the  characterization  in  James  Thacher,  Ameri- 
can Medical  Biography,  vol.  i.  p.  358.  Moses  Little  was  then  a  medical  student 
under  Dr.  J.  B.  Swett,  of  Newburyport.  Later  he  was  a  well-known  surgeon  in 
Salem,  and  lived  in  the  house  opposite  the  Essex  Institute.  He,  and  afterward 
his  children,  died  of  consumption  ;  fearing  this  result,  he  prepared  this  inscription, 
which  was  placed  on  his  tombstone,  — 

Phthisis  insatiabilis, 

Patrem  Matremque 

Devorasti. 

Parce,  O !  Parce, 

Liberis. 

He  was  the  son  of  Richard  Little,  a  shoemaker^  seaman,  and  farmer,  who  was 

living  in  1787  on  Newbury  Green.    G.  T.  Little,  The  Descendants  of  George 

Little,  pp.  37,  94. 


16  DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

way  to  TVenham.  We  had  several  smart  showers  in  the  course  of  the 
afternoon.  Just  before  dark  I  return'd  to  Mr.  Tufts's  at  the  Port.  In 
the  evening,  between  nine  and  ten,  we  had  a  very  heavy  shower,  with  a 
violent  gust  of  wind. 

16th.  I  went  again  this  forenoon  to  see  Miss  Jones,  and  offered  to 
call  in  the  afternoon  and  take  a  letter  for  Miss  Wigglesworth  ;  but 
when  we  set  out  I  entirely  forgot  my  promise,  and  did  not  recollect  it 
till  I  had  got  some  way  out  of  town.  Mr.  Thaxter  arrived  in  town 
this  morning,  and  dined  at  Mr.  Tufts's.  In  the  forenoon  I  engaged  a 
place  where  I  am  to  board ;  which  is  at  a  Mrs.  Leathers's.'^  It  is  not 
so  convenient  as  I  should  wish ;  but  I  must  put  up  with  it  for  a  time, 
and  when  I  get  here  I  shall  be  able  to  look  out  for  myself.  Soon 
after  dinner,  I  set  off  in  company  with  Mr.  Thaxter  ;  stopp'd  a  few 
minutes  at  Mr.  Dalton,  where  I  found  a  large  company  from  town,  and 
arrived  at  Haverhill  at  about  sunset. 

17th.  At  home  all  the  forenoon,  reading  Tom  Jones,^  one  of  the 
best  novels  in  the  language.  The  scenes  are  not  only  such  as  may 
have  taken  place,  but  they  are  similar  to  such  as  almost  every  per- 
son may  have  witnessed.  This  book  cannot  lead  a  person  to  form  too 
favorable  an  opinion  of  human  nature ;  but  neither  will  it  give  a  false 
one. 

Pass'd  the  afternoon  and  part  of  the  evening  at  Mr.  White's.  The 
papers  of  this  day  give  an  account  of  a  violent  hurricane,  which  did 
a  vast  deal  of  injury  in  the  towns  of  Framingham,  Sudbury,  Marl- 
borough and  some  others  in  the  County  of  Worcester,  on  Wednesday 
in  the  afternoon.  It  was  not  perceived  in  these  parts  of  the  country, 
where  there  were  only  two  or  three  heavy  showers  of  rain  in  the 
course  of  that  day. 

18th.  This  forenoon  I  took  a  ride  with  White  to  see  our  classmate 
Eaton,  We  spent  about  an  hour  with  him  and  return'd  before  dinner. 
Dined  at  Mr.  White's  and  the  afternoon  went  to  see  his  pearl  ash 
works :  ^  the  sight  of  these,  and  the  account  of  all  the  process  in 
making  pot  and  pearl  ash,  was  pleasing  because  it  was  new.  Leonard 
complains  very  much  of  the  stagnation  of  business ;  and  indeed  com- 
merce, as  well  as  the  other  professions,  offers  but  a  miserable  prospect 
to  young  persons.  It  is  however  to  be  hoped  that  the  scene  will 
brighten  within  a  few  years  ;  and  when  we  have  nothing  more  sub- 
stantial to  support  us,  we  must  place  our  dependence  upon  hope. 
When  I  return'd  home,  I  found  Mr.  Shaw  gone  to  Newbury,  where 
he  is  to  preach  to-morrow  for  Mr.  Kimball. 

1  Mrs.  Leathers  lived  on  State  Street,  a  block  below  Mr.  Parsons's  oflBce. 

2  Fielding's  novel,  "  Tom  Jones,"  was  published  in  1749. 

3  This  was  an  early  industry  in  Haverhill,  dating  from  1759.  It  furnished  an 
article  of  export  to  England,  Ireland,  etc.    Chase,  Hist,  of  Haverhill,  pp.  338, 452. 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  17 

19th.  Mr.  Kimhall  ^  preacli'd  a  couple  of  practical  discourses,  the 
subjects  of  which  I  liked  better  than  those  of  Mr.  Tappan,  last  Sunday: 
his  manner  of  treating  his  subjects,  though  good,  was  not,  I  think,  equal 
to  that  of  the  other  gentlemau.  After  meeting  I  convers'd  with  him, 
chiefly  upon  political  topics.  He  has  a  most  tremendous  frown  and 
appears  upon  so  short  an  acquaintance  to  be  possess'd  rather  of  a 
peevish  difficult  temper ;  which  I  judge  not  from  his  conversation  but 
his  countenance;  and  I  am  inform'd  that  this  opinion  is  not  erro- 
neous. It  was  almost  sunset  when  Mr.  Shaw  came  home.  Leonard 
"White  pass'd  part  of  the  evening  here,  and  I  took  a  walk  with  him 
down  upon  the  banks  of  the  river.  The  weather  very  fair,  but  looks 
as  if  it  would  not  continue  so  long. 

20th.  I  had  some  thoughts  of  leaving  Haverhill  this  morning,  but 
it  rain'd  all  the  forenoon ;  and,  as  I  am  not  in  any  particular  haste 
and  my  friends  here  are  still  willing  I  should  remain  with  them,  I 
determined  to  defer  my  departure  a  day  or  two  longer.  I  staid  at 
home  the  whole  day.  Mr.  Thaxter  ^  spent  the  evening  with  us.  He 
finally  declared  that  he  intended,  if  no  unforeseen  event  should  take 
place,  to  be  married  before  next  December;  and  I  am  heartily  glad 
of  it. 

21st.  Hazy  weather  again  all  the  forenoon.  I  went  and  pass'd 
an  hour  with  my  friend  White  before  dinner.  Spent  the  afternoon 
with  Mr.  Thaxter  at  his  office.  Mr.  Dodge  was  there,  a  great  part 
of  the  time.  We  conversed  upon  various  subjects.  Mr.  Thaxter, 
whose  feelings  are  very  warm,  express'd  his  sentiments  quite  openly 
with  respect  to  a  gentleman  whose  political  conduct  has  been  of  late 
somewhat   suspicious.     I    drank   tea   at   Mr.   B.    Bartlett's.^    Parson 

1  Rev.  True  Kimball  (H.  C.  1778),  born  in  Plaistow,  N.  H.,  January  28,  1757  ; 
settled  over  the  church  in  West  Newbury  from  November,  1782,  to  April, 
1797  ;  died  July  17,  1816,  at  Hampstead,  N.  H.  See  Coffin,  Hist,  of  Newbury, 
p.  370. 

2  John  Thaxter  (H.  C.  1774),  cousin  of  Mrs.  Abigail  Adams,  son  of  Colonel 
John  Thaxter,  of  Hingham,  and  grandson  of  Colonel  John  Quincy;  born 
July,  1755;  died  July,  1791.  At  the  outbreak  of  the  Revolutionary  troubles  he 
■was  studying  law  in  the  office  of  John  Adams ;  was  tutor  to  J.  Q.  Adams  for 
several  years,  and  accompanied  the  fixther  and  son,  as  private  secretary  to  the 
former,  on  his  second  mission  to  Europe  in  1779;  returned  to  America  in  1783 
as  the  bearer  of  the  Treaty  of  Peace  with  Great  Britain.  In  1787  he  was 
practising  law  in  Haverhill.  He  married  Elizabeth  Duncan,  daughter  of  James 
Duncan,  a  merchant  in  Haverhill.  See  J.  Q.  Adams,  Memoirs,  vol.  i.  p.  7  ;  Chase, 
Hist  of  Haverhill,  pp.  451,  628 ;  Familiar  Letters  of  John  and  Abigail  Adams, 
pp.  24,  27,  35,  307  ;  John  Adams,  Works,  vol.  vii.  p.  589 ;  etc. 

3  Bailey  Bartlett,  a  friend  of  John  Adams,  was  a  fellow-boarder  with  him  and 
with  Samuel  Adams  at  Philadelphia  when  the  Declaration  of  Independence  was 
adopted.  He  was  a  Representative  in  the  Legislature  1781-1784  ;  a  member  of  the 
State  Senate  in  1789,  and  of  the  Convention  which  ratified  the  Constitution  of  the 
United  States ;  a  Representative  to  Congress  in  1797  and  1799.    For  forty  years, 

3 


18  DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

Smith  ^  with  his  lady,  Captain  Willis  ^  and  his  wife  were  there,  and 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Lee  from  Cambridge.  It  was  the  first  time  I  had  ever 
been  in  company  with  Mr.  Lee :  he  has,  I  am  told,  much  more  show 
than  solidity.  He  does  good,  however,  with  his  fortune ;  and  this  is 
meritorious,  though  the  motives  by  which  he  is  actuated  may  not  be 
the  most  noble  and  generous.  Return'd  home  at  about  seven  o'clock, 
and  received  an  invitation  from  Judge  Sargeant,  which  will  detain  me 
here  one  day  more. 

22d.  Dined  at  Judge  Sargeant's,  with  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Shaw.  Mr. 
Porter^  and  his  lady  are  there  upon  a  visit  from  Rye;  with  a  child 
about  six  weeks  old,  which  forsooth  immediately  after  dinner  must  be 
produced,  and  was  handed  about  from  one  to  another ;  and  very 
shrewd  discoveries  were  made  of  its  resemblance  to  all  the  family  by 
turns,  whereas  in  fact  it  did  resemble  nothing  but  chaos.  How  much 
is  the  merciful  author  of  nature  to  be  adored  for  implanting  in  the 
heart  of  man  a  passion  stronger  than  the  power  of  reason,  which 
affords  delight  to  the  parent  at  the  sight  of  his  offspring,  even  at  a 
time  when  to  every  other  person  it  must  be  disgusting.  Yet  it 
appears  to  me  that  parents  would  do  wisely  in  keeping  their  children 
out  of  sight,  at  least  untill  they  are  a  year  old,  for  I  cannot  see  what 
satisfaction,  either  sensual  or  intellectual,  can  be  derived  from  seeing 
a  misshapen,  bawling,  slobbering  infant,  unless  to  persons  particularly 
interested.  We  drank  tea  likewise  at  the  Judge's,  and  return'd  home 
between  seven  and  eight  in  the  evening.  Leonard  White  came  up  to 
give  me  a  letter  for  his  chum. 

23d.  I  left  Havei-hill  this  morning  at  about  nine  o'clock;  and  at 
twelve  arrived  at  the  tavern  in  Wilmington,  where  I  dined.  At  about 
two  I  again  set  off  and  got  to  Cambridge  a  little  before  six.     I  came 

beginning  with  1789,  with  an  intermission  of  a  few  months  when  Elbridge  Gerry- 
was  Governor,  he  held  the  office  of  sheriff  in  Essex  County  ;  in  1828  he  cast  an 
electoral  vote  for  J.  Q.  Adams  as  President.  See  Hurd,  Hist,  of  Essex  County, 
pp.  2009,  2010 ;  G.  W.  Chase,  Hist,  of  Haverhill,  pp.  618-620. 

1  Rev.  Hezekiah  Smitli,  born  on  Long  Island,  N.  Y.,  April  21,  1737;  gradu- 
ated from  Princeton  in  17G2;  ordained  as  an  Evangelist  in  Charleston,  S.  C. ; 
gathered  a  Baptist  church  in  Haverhill;  remained  its  pastor  for  nearly  forty 
years,  until  his  death  in  1805.  In  1797  he  received  the  degree  of  D.D.  from 
Brown  University,  of  which  he  had  been  an  earnest  supporter.  Mrs.  B.  Bartlett 
was  a  daughter  of  John  White,  who  with  others  of  his  connection  were  the  earli- 
est adherents  of  Mr.  Smitli.  See  Chase,  Hist,  of  Haverhill,  pp.  584-587,  635; 
Hurd,  Hist,  of  Essex  County,  pp.  1994-1990. 

2  Captain  Benjamin  Willis,  born  in  Boston  January  10, 1743,  married  ]\Iary  Ball 
in  1765;  a  shipmaster  of  Charlestown  ;  was  taken  prisoner  by  the  British  on  the 
sea;  when  released  he  found  his  family  had  taken  refuge  in  Haverhill;  he  fol- 
lowed them  thither,  and  continued  his  interest  in  shipping.  See  Chase,  Hist,  of 
Haverhill,  pp.  451,  452;  Wyman's  Genealogies  and  Estates  of  Charlestown,  p.  1036. 

3  Mrs.  Porter  was  Judge  Sargeant's  daughter. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  19 

tlirough  Mystic  ^  and.  called  at  Mrs.  Tufts's,  to  see  my  friend  Freeman,'^ 
but  he  was  gone  to  Boston.  When  I  got  to  Cambridge  I  found  great 
alterations  had  taken  place  since  I  left  College,  Mr.  Reed  ^  and  Mr. 
Burr*  have  resigned,  and  likewise  the  librarian.^  Mr.  Webber^  and 
Mr.  Ware  were  chosen  as  Tutors,  but  Mr.  Ware  declined  accepting  as 
he  has  an  unanimous  call  to  settle  at  HinghamJ  and  will  probably 
soon  be  ordain'd.     Mr.  Abbot  ^  has  since  that  been  chosen,  and  Mr.  I. 

1  Mystic,  i.  e.  Medford,  the  home  town  of  the  Tufts  family.  Mrs.  Tufts  was 
probably  the  widow  of  Dr.  Simon  Tufts  (brother  of  Dr.  Cotton  Tufts),  who  died 
December  31,  1786.     Usher,  Hist,  of  Medford,  p.  563. 

2  J.  Q.  Adams's  classmate,  Nathaniel  Freeman.     See  {7ifra,  p.  26  note. 

3  Nathan  Read  (H.  C.  1781),  a  tutor  from  1783  to  1787;  studied  medicine;  an 
apothecary  at  Salem;  an  inventor;  1796  established  the  Salem  Iron  Foundry  for 
the  manufacture  of  anchors,  chain  cables,  etc. ;  elected  a  Representative  to  Con- 
gress in  1801 ;  removed  to  Belfast,  Me.,  in  1807 ;  was  one  of  the  leading  citizens 
of  the  town  ;  one  of  the  founders  of  Belfast  Academ3^  and  for  forty  years  one  of 
its  trustees ;  Chief  Justice  of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas ;  Fellow  of  the  Ameri- 
can Academy  of  Arts  and  Sciences  ;  died  in  January,  1849.  October  27, 1786,  J.  Q. 
Adams  wrote :  "  Mr.  Read  came  here  [Quincy]  in  the  afternoon,  to  spend  a  day. 
Though  he  cannot  entirely  lay  aside  the  tutor,  but  retains  a  little  of  the  collegi- 
ate stiffness,  yet  he  endeavours  to  be  affable,  and  is  very  sociable.  These  people 
when  distant  from  their  seat  of  empire,  and  divested  of  their  power  which  gives 
them  such  an  advantageous  idea  of  their  own  superiority,  are  much  more  agree- 
able than  they  are  when  their  dignity  puts  them  at  such  an  awful  distance  from 
tlieir  pupils.  Mr.  Read  conversed  much  upon  several  subjects  and  with  a  great 
deal  of  complaisance  ;  but  with  most  ease  and  pleasure  upon  subjects  which  form 
part  of  the  studies  at  the  university."  See  "  Harvard  College,  1786-1787,"  in  H. 
Adams,  Historical  Essays,  pp.  106,  107,  for  J.  Q.  Adams's  earlier  opinion  of  Read. 
See  J.  Williamson,  Hist,  of  Belfast,  pp.  550-552;  David  Read,  Nathan  Read:  his 
Inventions,  etc.,  a  pamphlet  of  200  pages ;  J.  L.  Chamberlain,  Universities  and 
their  Sons,  vol.  iv.  p.  422. 

4  Rev.  Jonathan  Burr  (H.  C.  1784),  tutor  from  1786  to  1787,  ordained  at  Sand- 
wich April  18,  1787;  he  was  a  pastor  there  for  thirty  years;  died  in  Sandwich 
in  1842.  He  was  chiefly  instrumental  in  the  establishment  of  the  academy 
at  Sandwich.  Freeman,  Hist,  of  Cape  Cod,  vol.  i.  p.  645 ;  vol.  ii.  pp.  134,  137, 
139,  144. 

5  Hon.  James  Winthrop  (H.  C.  1769),  librarian  from  1772  to  1787.  Born  in 
Cambridge  April  3,  1752,  a  son  of  Professor  John  Winthrop,  a  classmate  of  The- 
ophilus  Parsons ;  he  died  September  26, 1821.  He  was  one  of  the  founders 
of  the  Massachusetts  Historical  Society.  See  Proceedings,  vol.  i.  p.  338,  for  his 
portrait ;  2   Mass.  Hist.  Coll.,  vol.  x.  pp.  77-80  for  memoir  ;  etc.     See  infra,  p.  24. 

6  Samuel  Webber  (H.  C  1784),  later  President  of  Harvard  College  (1806- 
1810). 

7  Rev.  Henry  Ware  (H.  C.  1785),  pastor  at  Hingham  1787-1805,  Holli^  Profes- 
sor of  Divinity  at  Harvard  1805-1840.  He  had  been  a  student  of  theology  at 
Cambridge  for  the  past  two  years ;  and  during  his  first  months  in  college 
J.  Q.  Adams  roomed  with  him.  See  Sprague,  Annals  of  tlie  American  Pulpit, 
vol.  viii.  pp.  109-207.  H.  Adams,  Historical  Essays,  p.  86.  See  entry  in  this 
diary  of  October  24. 

8  John  Abbot  (H.  C.  1784),  tutor  1787-1792.  Born  at  Andover  April  8, 1759; 
he  was  Professor  of  Ancient  Languages  and  Classical  Literature  at  Bowdoin 


20  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

Smith  ^  was  elected  librarian,  but  has  not  yet  accepted.  I  passed 
the  evening  at  several  chambers  among  my  old  acquaiutauce,  Phillips. 
Clarke,  Lincoln  and  my  classmate  Packard;  ^  the  only  one  now  in  town. 
Indeed  it  seemed  extraordinary  to  walk  through  the  college  yard  and 
the  town  finding  scholars  everywhere,  yet  without  seeing  one  of  those 
with  whom  I  was  the  most  closely  connected.     It  made  me  quite  dull. 

24th,  I  lodg'd  last  night  with  Lincoln,  the  Senior,  whose  chum  was 
out  of  town.  Breakfasted  this  morning  with  Mr.  Andrews,  who 
returned  from  Hingham  last  evening.  I  visited  jMr.  James  and  Doc- 
tor Jennison ;  both  were  very  polite.^  The  doctor  informs  me  that 
several  material  alterations  are  about  to  take  place  with  respect  to 
the  plan  of  studies  pursued  here.     Doddridge*  is  to  be  put  entirely 

College  1802-1816 ;  Librarian  there  1802-1824,  and  Treasurer  1816-1829 ;  he  died 
at  Andover  July  2,  1843.  Gen.  Catalogue  of  Bowdoin  College.  He  was  a 
cousin  of  J.  Q.  Adams's  classmate,  Abiel  Abbot.  Gen.  Register  of  the  Abbot 
Family. 

1  Rev.  Isaac  Smith  (H.  C.  1767),  a  scholarly  man,  fond  of  a  quiet  life,  a  kins- 
man of  Abigail  Adams,  son  of  a  Boston  merchant ;  born  May  18,  1749;  tutor  at 
Harvard  in  1774  ;  left  for  Europe  on  the  outbreak  of  the  war;  became  pastor  of  a 
small  congregation  at  Sidmouth  on  tlie  coast  of  Devonshire ;  returned  to  Amer- 
ica in  1784 ;  librarian  at  Harvard  1787-1791 ;  prepared  the  first  printed  catalogue  of 
the  Harvard  College  Library  ;  was  preceptor  at  Dummer  Academy,  Byfield,  1791- 
1809;  lastly  chaplain  of  the  Almsiiouse  in  Boston;  died  September  8,  1829,  aged 
eighty  years ;  was  never  married.  N.  Cleaveland,  The  First  Century  of  Dum- 
mer Academy,  pp.  34-39;  Journal  and  Letters  of  Samuel  Curwen,  pp.  69-71,  73, 
106,  189-205,  465  ;  Christian  Examiner,  vol.  xlii.  pp.  337-339. 

2  "  Hezekiah  Packard,  of  Newtown,  Middlesex  Co.,  was  twenty -four  the  6th  of 
last  December.  He  has  a  good  share  of  original  wit;  but  his  genius  is  not  uncom- 
mon :  his  improvements  are  greater  than  those  of  the  students  in  general,  but 
not  such  as  to  place  him  in  the  first  rank  of  scholars.  As  a  speaker  he  is  too 
much  addicted  to  a  monotony,  whatever  his  declamations  are.  His  disposition  is 
good,  and  his  moral  character  is  unimpeachable."  J.  Q.  Adams,  diary.  May  22, 
1787.  Packard's  father  was  a  farmer  in  Bridgewater,  Mass.  He  was  born 
December  6,  1761 ;  a  soldier  during  the  Revolution,  a  boy  of  fourteen  he  was  in 
the  battle  of  Harlem  Heights  ;  had  an  unfortunate  hospital  experience  ;  cultivated 
his  farm;  and  finally,  in  the  spring  of  1782,  decided  to  prepare  for  college.  In 
1787  Hezekiah  Packard  taught  the  Grammar  Scliool  in  Cambridge  and  had  a 
room  in  the  college.  He  was  a  tutor  in  mathematics  for  four  years  from  1789; 
was  pastor  of  the  church  in  Chelmsford  from  October,  1793,  to  July  29, 1802;  a  pas- 
tor at  Wiscasset,  Me.,  from  1802  to  1830  ;  pastor  at  Middlesex  Village  of  Ciielms- 
ford,  Mass.,  from  1830  to  1836  ;  for  seventeen  years  a  trustee  of  Bowdoin  College 
and  for  ten  years  Vice-President ;  he  died  April  25,  1819,  at  Salem.  See  Memoir 
of  Rev.  Hezekiah  Packard,  D.D. ;  chiefly  autobiographical  (1850),  68  pp.;  J.  Q. 
Adams,  Memoirs,  vol.  viii.  p.  406  ;  Memories  of  S.  Willard,  vol.  i.  p.  226. 

«  Eleazar  James  (H.  C.  1778)  was  a  tutor  from  1781  to  1789.  Timothy  Lin- 
dall  Jennison  (H.  C.  1782),  born  July  15,  1761,  at  Douglas ;  tutor  1785-1788  ;  re- 
ceived tiie  honorary  degree  of  M.D.  in  1824  ;  died  in  Cambridge  October  19,  1815. 
"  Harvard  College,  1786-1787"  in  H.  Adams,  Historical  Essays,  pp.  106, 118. 

*  Philip  Doddridge,  Course  of  Lectures  on  Pneumatology,  Ethics,  and  Divin- 
ity, 2  vols.,  1763  (2d  ed.,  1776).    When  J.  Q.  Adams  was  in  college,  all  Juniors 


DIARY   OP  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  21 

into  the  hands  of  the  theological  professor,  which  is  its  proper  place ; 
and  some  attention  to  history  is  to  be  called  forth  by  the  recitations 
on  Saturday  mornings.  The  mathematics  will  be  taught  in  better 
order  than  they  have  been  heretofore;  and  indeed  it  always  appear'd 
absurd  to  me,  tliat  Sophomores  should  study  Euclid,  and  learn  common 
arithmetic  after  they  commence  Juniors.  Henceforth  arithmetic,  with 
some  little  practical  geometry,  surveying,  trigonometry,  &c.,  are  to  be 
taught  them  before  they  begin  upon  Euclid,  —  all  the  changes  which 
the  doctor  mentioned  will,  I  think,  be  for  the  better.  Dined  with 
Mr.  Andrews  and  passed  the  afternoon  at  college.  Just  as  I  was 
going  into  prayers,  I  was  stopped  by  a  couple  of  French  officers  from 
on  board  the  fleet  now  lying  in  Boston  Harbour.^  They  desired  to 
see  the  colleges.  I  waited  on  them  into  the  library,  the  museum  and 
the  philosopliy  chamber.  After  they  had  satisfied  their  curiosity,  they 
set  out  for  Boston,  and  I  for  Braintree.  It  was  between  six  and  seven 
o'clock  before  I  got  away ;  at  about  nine  I  arrived  at  Braintree,  where 
I  found  all  my  friends  well. 

25th.  In  the  forenoon  I  went  to  Weymouth,  to  return  Dr.  Tufts's 
horse.  Dined  at  the  doctor's  and  pass'd  the  afternoon  there ;  walk'd 
leisurely  home,  and  arrived  at  about  sunset.  This  morning  Mrs. 
Cranch  and  her  son-  went  to  Boston.  My  cousin  intends  to  read 
law  with  Mr.  Dawes,^  and  will  enter  his  office  next  Monday.  Very 
damp  sultry  weather. 

26th.    I  did  not  attend  meeting  this  day.     Employ'd  myself  chiefly 

and  Seniors  were  obliged  to  attend  a  series  of  lectures  on  divinity  and  were  exam- 
ined "on  assigned  portions  of  the  theological  part  of  Doddridge's  Lectures." 
See  Josiah  Quincy,  Hist,  of  Harvard  University,  vol.  ii.  pp.  259,  260. 

1  August  23,  1787,  there  arrived  in  Boston  harbor  a  French  squadron  of  seven 
sail  under  the  command  of  the  Marquis  de  Senneville,  who  had  brought  to  Amer- 
ica, in  1778,  the  treaty  with  France.  It  remained  till  September  28.  See  the 
"  Centinel." 

2  "  William  Cranch,  of  Braintree,  was  seventeen  the  17th  of  last  July.  The  ties 
of  blood,  strengthened  by  those  of  the  sincerest  friendship,  unite  me  to  him  in  the 
nearest  manner.  Our  sentiments  upon  most  subjects  are  so  perfectly  similar,  that 
I  could  not  praise  his,  without  being  conscious  of  expressing  a  tacit  applause  of 
my  own.  His  manners  I  can  however  pronounce  amiable;  his  spirit,  nobly  inde- 
pendent ;  his  judgment  sound,  and  liis  imagination  lively.  His  thirst  for  useful 
knowledge  and  his  fondness  for  study  is  not  surpassed  by  that  of  any  individual 
in  the  class:  happy  were  it  for  me,  if  with  a  perfect  coincidence  with  his  opin- 
ions in  general,  I  could  unite  the  same  talents  and  the  same  accomplishments." 
Diary  of  J.  Q.  Adams,  March  19,  1787.  William  Cranch  was  a  classmate  of  J.  Q. 
Adams  at  Harvard.  He  was  appointed  by  John  Adams  a  Judge  of  the  Circuit 
Court  of  the  District  of  Columbia,  and  was  later  its  Chief  Justice.  See  Appleton, 
Cyclopaedia  of  American  Biography. 

3  Thomas  Dawes  (H.  C.  1777),  born  in  Boston  in  1758,  studied  law  under  John 
Lowell ;  1792-1802  a  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Massachusetts  ;  1802-1822 
Judge  of  the  Municipal  Court  in  the  town  of  Boston.  W.  T.  Davie,  Hist,  of 
the  Judiciary  of  Massachusetts,  p.  186.  ^ 


22  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAM3. 

in  reading  and  writing.  Mr.  Weld^  preach'd  for  Mr.  "Wibird,^  and 
dined  liere.  Miss  Street  and  one  of  Capt'n  Beale's  sons,  with  Mr. 
J.  "Warren  ^  dined  with  us  likewise ;  in  the  evening  Mrs.  Cranch  and 
Dr.  Tufts  return'd  from  Boston.  My  uncle  Smith  has  been  for  some 
time  very  ill  of  a  complication  of  disorders.  The  doctor  thinks  he 
is  at  present  better  than  he  has  been,  but  that  the  symptoms  are  yet 
dangerous.  Up  late  in  consequence  of  an  afternoon  nap;  read  some 
poetry  and  some  prose,  in  a  cursory  manner. 

27th.  I  employ'd  myself  in  the  forenoon  with  making  some  neces- 
sary preparations  before  my  final  departure  for  Newbury-Port.  In  the 
afternoon  I  accompanied  the  ladies  to  Mrs.  Quincy's.*  Miss  Nancy 
has  been  very  ill,  and  is  much  thinner  than  when  I  saw  her  last. 
She  is,  however,  recovering.  Pass'd  an  agreeable  afternoon,  and 
return'd  home  just  after  dark. 

28th.  Rode  out  in  the  morning  with  Mrs.  Cranch.^  It  rain'd  hard 
all  the  afternoon  —  chilly  north-east  wind.  The  fruits  of  the  earth 
are  at  this  time  extremely  backward,  on  account  of  the  little  heat 
and  the  great  rains  that  have  prevailed  this  summer.  The  productions 
of  our  lands  require  frequent,  rather  than  plentiful  rains,  and  great 
heat,  as  the  summers  are  so  short. 

1  Rev.  Ezra  Weld  (Yale  College,  1759),  pastor  in  the  neighboring  South  Pre- 
cinct of  Braintree  from  November  17,  1702,  to  August  17,  18U7  ;  boru  in  Ponifret, 
Conn.,  June  13,  1736;  died  at  Braintree  January  16,  1816;  brother-in-law  of  Dr. 
Micajah  Sawyer  of  Newburyport.  Hurd,  Hist,  of  Norfolk  County,  p.  113;  Hurd, 
Hist,  of  Essex  County,  p.  1744. 

2  Rev.  Anthony  Wibird  (H.  C.  1747),  pastor  of  the  North  Precinct  of  Brain- 
tree, later  (after  1792)  known  as  Quincy,  for  forty-five  years,  from  1755  to  1800; 
born  at  Portsmouth  February  14,  1728-29;  died  at  Quincy  June  4,  1800.  In 
1759  John  Adams  describes  him  as  having  a  great  knowledge  of  human  nature, 
but  as  being  steeped  in  a  "  dronish  effeminacy  " ;  and,  on  Fast-day,  1775,  Mrs. 
Abigail  Adams  drove  to  Dedliam  because  she  "  could  not  bear  to  hear  our  inani- 
mate old  bachelor."  J.  Q.  Adams  wrote,  April  15,  1787 :  "  Went  to  meeting  in 
the  forenoon  and  heard  Mr.  Wibird  preach.  The  most  pleasing  part  of  his  per- 
formances is  his  readhig  the  Psalms  :  I  never  heard  any  person  read  poetry  with 
so  much  propriety,  and  energy.  He  appears  inspired  at  those  times,  though 
never  in  his  own  discourses.  I  did  not  go  in  the  afternoon."  John  Adams, 
Works,  vol.  ii.  pp.  60,  72,  197  ;  Letters  of  Mrs.  Abigail  Adams  (1848),  p.  48  ;  C.  F. 
Adams,  Three  Episodes  of  Massachusetts  History,  pp.  641-643,  762,  841. 

3  Probably  Joseph  Warren  (H.  C.  17S6),  son  of  General  Joseph  Warren,  born 
August  10,  1768;  died  April  2,  1790;  an  officer  at  the  Castle.  Frothingham, 
Life  and  Times  of  Joseph  Warren,  p.  545. 

*  Mrs.  Ann  Quincy,  widow  of  Josiah  Quincy  (1709-1784),  grandmother  of 
Josiah  Quincy,  President  of  Harvard  University.  "  Nancy  "  married  the  Rev. 
Asa  Packard,  of  Marlborough,  a  brotlier  of  J.  Q.  Adams's  classmate,  Hezekiah 
Packard,  and  died  February,  1844,  at  the  advanced  age  of  eighty.  Edmund 
Quincy,  Life  of  Josiah  Quincy,  p.  56.     See  infra,  p.  28. 

^  Mrs.  Mary  Smith  Cranch,  aunt  of  J.  Q.  Adams,  wife  of  Richard  Cranch, 
mother  of  Judge  William  Cranch. 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  23 

29th.  Rain'd  in  the  fore  part  of  the  day,  but  cleared  up  in  the 
afternoon.  I  went  with  my  gun  down  upon  the  marshes;  but  had  no 
sport.  Game  laws  are  said  to  be  directly  opposed  to  the  liberties  of 
the  subject :  I  am  well  persuaded  that  they  may  be  carried  too  far, 
and  that  they  really  are  in  most  parts  of  Europe.  But  it  is  equally 
certain  that  where  there  are  none,  there  never  is  any  game ;  so  that 
the  difference  between  the  country  where  laws  of  this  kind  exist  and 
that  where  they  are  unknown  must  be  that  in  the  former  very  few 
individuals  will  enjoy  the  privilege  of  hunting  and  eating  venison,  and 
in  the  latter  this  privilege  will  be  enjoy'd  by  nobody, 

30th.  Staid  at  home  the  whole  day.  Doctor  Tufts  was  here  in  the 
morning,  on  his  road  to  Boston,  and  in  the  evening  on  his  return.  I 
took  a  nap  in  the  afternoon  and  had  a  strange  dream.  I  cannot  con- 
ceive where  my  imagination  ransack'd  the  ideas  which  prevailed  at 
that  time  in  my  mind.  This  part  of  the  action  of  the  human  soul  is 
yet  to  be  accounted  for,  and  perhaps  has  not  been  scrutinized  with 
so  much  accuracy  as  it  might  have  been.  In  the  evening  I  read 
about  one  half  of  Mr.  Jefferson's  Notes  ^  upon  Virginia  and  was  very 
much  pleased  with  them  ;  there  is  a  great  deal  of  learning  shown  with- 
out ostentation,  and  a  spirit  of  philosophy  equally  instructive  and 
entertaining. 

31st.  A  very  warm  day.  Rambling  all  the  morning.  I  met  a  couple 
of  Fi-ench  officers,  gunning  on  my  uncle's  farm.  In  the  afternoon  I 
went  with  the  ladies,  to  see  my  Grand-mamma ;  ^  return'd  at  about 
dusk ;  and  closed  the  last  day  which  I  propose  to  spend  in  Braintree 
for  some  time. 

Saturday,  September  1st,  1787. 

Between  nine  and  ten  o'clock  this  morning  I  departed  from  Braintree 
with  Mrs.  Cranch  ;  we  got  to  Mr.  Foster's  at  about  twelve.  I  went  to 
Mr.  Dawes's  office,  where  I  found  Cranch  and  Forbes ;  dined  with 
the  former  at  Mr.  Foster's.  Stroll'd  about  town  all  the  afternoon,  and 
just  before  sunset  I  took  a  walk  to  Cambridge ;  where  I  arrived  at 
about  eight  o'clock. 

2d.  Attended  meeting  all  day.  Mr.  Hilliard  ^  preach 'd ;  much  in 
the  old  way.  The  meeting  house,  however,  did  not  look  as  it  was  wont. 
The  same  deficiency  I  found  there  that  I  had  perceived  in  the  colleges 

1  The  first  English  edition  of  Jefferson's  "Notes"  was  Paris,  1782;  the  first 
American  edition,  Philadelpiiia,  1788. 

2  Susanna  Boylston  Adams,  daughter  of  Peter  Boylston,  of  Brookline,  born 
March  5,  1G99;  died  April  17,  1797.     A.  N.  Adams,  Adams  Hist. 

3  Rev.  Timothy  Hilliard  (H.  C.  1764),  pastor  of  the  First  Church  in  Cambridge 
from  October  27,  1783,  until  his  death,  May  9,  1790.  Born  at  Kensington,  N.  H., 
February  28,  1747;  tutor  at  Harvard  1768-1771;  pastor  at  Barnstable  1771-1783. 
Paige,  Hist,  of  Cambridge,  p.  298. 


24  DIARY  OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

and  everywhere  in  this  town.  All  my  classmates  gone.  I  dined 
at  Mr.  Wigglesworth's  with  Packard,  Peggy  appears  as  amiable 
as  ever.  I  pass'd  the  evening  with  my  brothers,  and  lodg'd  with 
Tom. 

3d.  I  pass'd  about  an  hour,  before  dinner,  with  Mr.  Winthrop,  the 
late  librarian.  He  is  much  of  a  politician  ;  his  opinion  with  respect 
to  the  situation  of  the  country  is  always  favorable.  Dined  with  Mr. 
Andrews.  Lincoln,^  the  Senior,  was  there  ;  a  young  lad  of  good  abilities, 
and  of  great  application.  In  the  afternoon  I  met  a  couple  of  French 
officers  in  the  College  yard,  who  wish'd  to  see  the  library  and  museum; 
but  the  butler  was  not  to  be  found,  and  they  were  obliged  to  defer 
the  gratification  of  their  curiosity  to  some  future  opportunity.  In  the 
evening  I  sat  about  an  hour  in  my  brothers'  chamber.  A  number  of 
Juniors  were  collected  in  a  chamber  near  there,  and  were  enjoying 
all  the  pleasures  of  conviviality ;  it  brought  to  my  mind  the  frequent 
scenes  of  a  similar  nature,  at  which  I  was  present,  a  short  time  ago. 
An  involuntary  sigh  arose  in  my  breast ;  I  left  the  chamber  to  put  a 
stop  to  melancholy  recollection,  and  went  to  the  butler's  room ;  I 
found  Mr.  Stedman  and  Mr.  Andrews  with  him,  and  pass'd  the 
remainder  of  the  evening  very  agreeably.  Stedman  ^  and  Harris  ^ 
exerted  their  talents  at  telling  stories,  and  diverted  us  very  much; 
between  nine  and  ten,  I  retired  with  Mr.  Andrews  and  lodg'd  with 
him. 

4th.  After  breakfast  I  return'd  to  College,  and  on  the  way  stopp'd 
at  the  President's.  He  was  not  at  home,  but  Mrs.  Willard  desired  me 
to  take  a  letter  for  Sophy,*  who  is  now  on  a  visit  at  Newbury-Port. 
At  about  ten  o'clock  I  went  with  a  number  of  scholars  in  the  stage 
carriage  for  Boston  ;  just  as  we  were  going  off  we  met  Cranch  who 
had  walk'd  up  from  Boston,  expecting  there  would  be  a  meeting  of  the 
4>  B  K  this  forenoon,  but  as  it  is  deferr'd  till  to-morrow,  he  return'd 
with  us.     I  attended  Court,  but  there  were  no  causes  of  any  great 

1  Abner  Lincoln,  born  July  17,  1766,  in  Hingham  ;  married  Hannah,  daughter 
of  General  Benjamin  Lincoln;  was  preceptor  of  Derby  Academy  1790-1805; 
died  June  10,  1826.  Hist,  of  Hingham,  vol.  i.  part  ii.  pp.  129,  138;  vol.  ii. 
p.  481. 

2  Stedman,  the  law  student  with  Theophilus  Parsons ;  see  supra,  p.  14  note. 
2  Harris  ;  see  infrn,  p.  26  note. 

*  Sophia  Willard  married  Francis  Dana,  Jr.,  August  4,  1802.  Paige,  Hist,  of 
Cambridge,  p.  692 ;  H.  Adams,  Historical  Essays,  pp.  102-104,  for  J.  Q.  Adams's 
opinion  of  President  Willard.  "  Cranch  and  myself  dined  at  the  President's. 
Mrs.  Willard  is  as  different  in  her  manners  from  the  President  as  can  be ;  they 
form  quite  a  contrast.  Mrs.  W.  is  easy  and  unaffected,  and  appears  not  to  be 
made  for  cerimony.  He  is  stiff  and  formal,  attached  to  every  custom  and 
trifling  form  as  much  as  to  what  is  of  consequence ;  however,  he  was  quite 
sociable ;  much  more  80  indeed  than  I  should  have  expected."  J.  Q.  Adams, 
September  10,  1786. 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  25 

importance  argued.  Dined  with  Mr.  Dawes,  in  company  with  Mr. 
Gardiner,^  who  was  once  an  orator  on  the  4th  of  July.  lie  is  an 
origiual  character,  but  shows  much  more  wit  in  his  private  conversa- 
tion than  in  his  pubUc  performances.  I  had  engaged  a  place  in  the 
stage  to  go  to  Newbury- Port  to-morrow,  and  I  found  some  difficulty  to 
disengage  myself;  however  another  person  applied  in  the  afternoon, 
and  I  retain'd  my  place  for  Friday.  Pass'd  the  evening  at  Mr. 
Smith's,  with  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Otis  and  Dr.  Welch ^  and  his  lady;  lodg'd 
with  my  cousin  at  Mr.  Foster's. 

5th.  Took  an  early  breakfast,  and  walk'd  with  Cranch  to  Cam- 
bridge ;  we  got  to  Packard's  chamber,  just  after  nine  o'clock.  There 
was  a  meeting  of  the  <i>  B  K.  The  president  ^  and  vice-president  ^  being 
both  absent,  JMr.  Andrews  presided  for  the  meeting ;  a  number  of  new 
regulations  were  introduced  ;  the  resignation  of  the  president  was  read 
and  accepted.  Just  before  twelve,  the  officers  for  the  ensuing  year 
were  ballotted.     Mr.  "Ware,*  (who  arrived  just  before  the  choice)  was 

1  John  Gardiner,  the  Bostonian  who  served  as  junior  counsel  in  one  of  the 
celebrated  "John  Wilkes"  cases  in  England,  delivered  the  oration  at  Boston  on 
July  4,  1785.  See  J.  S.  Loring,  The  Hundred  Boston  Orators,  pp.  168-172; 
Appleton,  Cyclopedia  of  American  Biography. 

'  Bresuraably  Deacon  Isaac  Smitli  of  the  Brattle  Square  Church  in  Boston ; 
Samuel  AUeyne  Otis  (H.  C.  1759),  brotlier  of  James  Otis,  father  of  Harrison 
Gray  Otis,  one  time  speaker  of  the  House  of  Delegates  of  Massachusetts,  Secre- 
tary of  the  United  States  Senate,  etc. ;  Mary,  his  second  wife,  daughter  of  Deacon 
Smitli.  This  same  group,  including  Dr.  Welsh,  is  mentioned  in  tlie  diary  Sep- 
tember 26  and  Octol.er  14,  1786.  Thomas  Welsh,  M.I).  (H.  C.  1772),  born  at 
Charlestown  June  1,  1752  j  married  Abigail  Kent,  daughter  of  a  sea-captain  of 
Charlestown,  niece  of  Deacon  Smith ;  was  an  array  surgeon  at  Lexington  and 
Bunker  Hill ;  March  5, 1783,  delivered  the  last  of  the  series  of  orations  at  the  "  Old 
Brick  Churcli"  on  tlie  site  of  Cornhill-square  to  commemorate  the  Boston  Mas- 
sacre. In  1787  Dr.  Welsh  was  a  physician  residing  on  Sudbury  Street  in  Boston. 
In  1799  he  was  surgeon  at  Castle  Island  ;  physician  at  the  hospital  at  Rainsford's 
Island  for  many  years ;  member  of  the  Boston  Board  of  Healtli ;  vice-president 
of  the  Massachusetts  Medical  Society  in  1815;  a  member  of  the  American 
Academy  of  Arts  and  Sciences ;  died  at  Boston  February  9,  1831.  J.  S. 
Loring,  The  Hundred  Boston  Orators,  pp.  154,  155;  Wyman,  Genealogies  of 
Charlestown,  pp.  571,  1007;  J.  Q.  Adams,  Memoirs,  vol.  ii.  p.  4;  etc. 

3  Joshua  Paine  (H.  C.  1781),  son  of  Rev.  Joshua  Paine,  of  Sturbridge,  born 
December  5, 176-3;  received  the  degree  of  A.M.  from  Yale  in  1787  ;  installed  over 
the  church  in  Charlestown  January  10, 1787;  died  February  20,  1788.  See  Peter 
Thacher,  Sermon  preached  at  Charlestown,  February  29,  1788,  on  the  interment 
of  Rev.  Joshua  Paine,  Jr.  "  Mr.  Paine  was  [at  Mr.  Hilliard's]  and  appeared 
quite  happy  in  his  new  situation.  The  people  of  Charlestown,  who  never 
could  be  united  in  their  opinions  for  a  minister,  are  universally  very  much 
attached  to  him,  and  his  talents  and  virtues  are  such  as  will  probably  preserve 
him  that  esteem,  which  he  has  every  where  acquired.  Mr.  H.  appears  to  be 
very  fond  of  him,  and  proud  of  him  as  a  brother."  J.  Q.  Adams,  January 
15,  1787. 

*  Rev.  Henry  Ware,  Vice-President,  1786-1787 ;  President,  1787-1791. 
4 


26  DIARY  OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

elected  president ;  Mr.  Harris,^  vice-president ;  Abbot,^  secretary ;  and 
Phillips,*  treasurer.  Immediately  after  this  business  was  finished,  we 
walk'd  in  procession  to  the  chapel,  preceded  by  the  two  orators 
{Lowell  and  Freeman).     Freeman'*  gave  us  an  oration  containing  mis- 

1  William  Harris  (H.  C.  178G),  then  a  student  of  theology  ;  later  (1802-1816) 
rector  of  St.  Mark's  in  New  York  and  (1811-1829)  President  of  Columbia  College. 

2  Probably  Abiel  Abbot  (II.  C.  1787),  born  December  14, 17G5,  at  Wilton,  N.  II. ; 
taught  at  Phillips  Andover  and  at  Harvard ;  pastor  of  the  church  at  Coventry, 
Conn.,  1795-1811  ,  compelled  to  resign  for  "  heresy  " ;  Principal  of  Dummer 
Academy  1811-1819 ;  farmer  in  Andover  ;  in  182-1  established  a  school  at  Chelms- 
ford ;  in  182(3  took  a  farm  in  Wilton  ;  1827  to  1839  pastor  at  Peterborough,  N.  II. ; 
received  the  degree  of  Doctor  of  Divinity  from  Harvard  in  1838;  died  in  Cam- 
bridge January  31,  1859,  aged  ninety-three.  Sprague,  Annals  of  tlie  American 
Pulpit,  vol.  viii.  pp.  229-211 ;  Cleaveland,  The  First  Century  of  Dummer  Acad- 
emy, p.  42;  Abiel  Abbot,  etc..  Genealogical  Register  of  the  Abbot  Family 
(1847).  p.  7. 

3  John  Phillips  (H.  C.  1788),  a  member  of  the  Massachusetts  Senate  for  nearly 
twenty  years  and  first  Mayor  of  Boston.  See  J.  Q.  Adams,  Memoirs,  vol.  i.  pp. 
249,  467,  409;  vol.  viii.  p.  406. 

*  April  2,  1787,  J.  Q.  Adams  wrote  :  "  Nathaniel  Freeman,  of  Sandwich, 
County  of  Barnstable,  was  twenty-one  the  1st  of  last  month.  Few  persons  are  so 
liberally  gifted  by  nature  as  this  gentleman  —  he  is  of  a  middle  size,  but  extremely 
well  proportioned,  his  countenance  is  very  handsome  and  full  of  dignity.  As  an  ani- 
mated speaker  he  shines  unrivaled  in  our  class,  and  for  brilliancy  of  imagination 
he  is  inferior  to  none  of  his  fellow  students.  He  appears  to  be  well  acquainted 
with  his  peculiar  excellence,  and  has  therefore  chiefly  attended  to  composition; 
perhaps  he  has  gone  too  far  in  this  respect  so  as  to  neglect  other  studies  equally 
useful.  In  the  languages,  in  the  mathematical,  and  philosophical  pursuits,  and  in 
metapliysics,  though  superior  to  the  generality  of  the  students,  he  is,  however, 
surpassed  by  many  individuals.  He  was  formed  for  an  orator,  and  as  such  he 
will  be  distinguished  whether  he  plead  at  the  bar  or  administer  at  the  altar. 
With  great  sensibility  he  unites  great  ambition ;  but  notwithstanding  his  numer- 
ous advantages  he  is  as  free  from  vanity  as  any  person  of  my  acquaintance.  He 
is  warm  in  his  friendship,  and  perhaps  rather  too  keen  in  his  resentments.  His 
passions  are  strong,  but  their  violence  is  counteracted  by  the  generosity  of  his 
heart.  He  has  man)'  imperfections  which  are  the  concomitants  of  humanity ; 
but  upon  the  whole  it  would  be  difficult  to  find  at  this  university  a  more  promis- 
ing character."  The  son  of  General  Nathaniel  Freeman,  M.D.,  he  was  born  ia 
Sandwich  March  1,  1766;  studied  law;  in  1794  received  a  unanimous  vote,  save 
one,  as  Representative  to  Congress,  and  served  two  terms ;  died  August  22, 1800; 
a  brigade  major  for  sixteen  years  of  his  short  life.  See  Freeman,  Hist,  of  Cape 
Cod,  voL  i.  p.  561;  vol.  ii.  p.  137.  The  "Mass.  Centinel"  for  July  21,  1787, 
gives  a  highly  laudatory  account  of  his  oration  at  the  Harvard  Commencement. 
On  May  21  Mr.  Adams  wrote,  "  Was  employ'd  the  chief  part  of  the  day  in 
writing  my  part  for  Commencement,  and  have  not  yet  finished  it.  As  I  am 
conscious  of  having  no  talent  at  rhetorical  composition,  this  allotment  has  given 
me  a  vast  deal  of  anxiety.  As  my  part  is  of  the  same  kind  with  that  of  Freeman 
whose  chief  talent,  among  many  others,  lies  in  this  kind  of  compositions,  I  dread 
the  comparisons  wliich  may  be  made;  and  although  my  friendship  for  him  is 
such  that  I  shall  rejoyce  to  see  him  perform  his  part  with  universal  approbation 
and  unbounded  applause,  yet  I  cannot  help  fearing  that  contrasts  may  be  drawn, 
which  will  reflect  disgrace  upon  me."    Apparently  the  fears  here  expressed  were 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  27 

cellaneous  observations,  without  any  professed  subject ;  and  this  like  all 
his  other  performances  was  extremely  well  written,  and  equally  well  de- 
liver'd.  LoweW^  gave  us  an  encomium  upon  history,  which  contained 
a  number  of  very  good  observations,  but  his  delivery  was  not  without  a 
share  of  that  affectation  which,  if  I  may  so  express  myself,  is  natural  to 
him.  The  students  attended  very  generally  except  those  of  the  Senior 
class  ;  who  kept  off,  from  a  spirit  of  envy,  all  except  D.*^  We  return'd 
to  tlie  butler's  room,  and  soon  after  proceeded  to  Mr.  Warland's,  where 
we  had  an  excellent  dinner  provided  for  us.  Besides  the  members  of 
the  present  Senior  class,  there  were  present  Mr.  Kendall,^  and  jNIr.  B. 
Green,'*  Mr.  Ware,  Mi*.  Andrews,  Mr.  Harris,  Packard,  Cranch,  Free- 
man, and  myself.  After  passing  a  couple  of  hours  in  friendly  mirth  and 
festivity,  at  three  o'clock  we  adjouru'd  again  to  Packard's  chamber, 
where  we  voted  to  admit  Mr.  Bancroft,^  a  minister  of  Worcester  ;  Mr. 

unfounded,  as  under  date  of  Commencement  Day  (July  18)  he  wrote  that  he  "  was 
complimented  and  flattered  on  every  siile.  One  such  day  every  year,  would 
ruin  me."  "Harvard  College,  1786-1787,"  in  H.  Adams,  Historical  Essays, 
p.  99. 

1  John  Lowell  (H.  C.  1786),  son  of  Judge  John  Lowell,  became  one  of  the 
leaders  of  the  Federalist  Party  in  Massachusetts.  He  and  J.  Q.  Adams  do  not 
seem  to  have  harmonized  when  they  were  both  members  of  the  Massachusetts 
Senate  in  1802  ;  John  Lowell  was  then  one  of  the  supporters  of  Timothy  Picker- 
ing ;  later,  a  signer  of  the  letter  of  November  26,  1828,  demanding  of  J.  Q.  Adams 
the  names  of  the  Federalist  leaders  charged  with  wishing  a  dissolution  of  the 
Union  in  1808  ;  he  also  signed  the  "  Appeal  to  the  Citizens  of  the  United  States  " 
of  January  28, 1829.  J.  Q.  Adams,  Memoirs,  vol.  i.  pp.  252,  259,  463,  vol.  vi.  p.  14 ; 
H.  Adams,  New  England  Federalism,  pp.  45,  91,  185,  410-414;  etc. 

2  D.  did  not  sustain  an  enviable  reputation  in  later  life.  He  became  a  min- 
ister ;  divided  the  church  at  Pomfret,  Conn.,  and  thereby  secured  a  pastorate 
for  himself;  but  became  a  drunkard  and  lost  it;  died  1802.  See  D.  Hunt, 
Hist,  of  Pomfret,  Conn.,  pp.  14, 15. 

3  Samuel  Kendal  (H.  C.  1782)  was  president  of  the  Society,  1781-1783  and 
1784-1786.  Born  at  Sherburne,  Mass.,  July  11,  1753 ;  carried  to  Nova  Scotia  by 
his  father;  worked  on  farms  till  he  could  purchase  the  last  two  years  of  his 
minority ;  crossing  the  Bay  of  Fundy  with  a  friend  in  a  little  boat,  he  made  his 
way  to  Sherburne ;  studied  under  Rev.  Elijah  Brown ;  joined  the  army  when 
the  war  broke  out ;  entered  college  when  twenty-five ;  supported  himself  when 
there  by  teaching  school  at  Waltham  in  the  vacation,  etc.  ;  was  a  pastor  at 
"Weston  from  November  5,  1783,  till  his  death,  February  15,  1814.  See  AY.  B. 
Sprague,  Annals  of  the  American  Pulpit,  vol.  viii.  pp.  170-181. 

4  Benjamin  Green  (II.  C.  1784),  born  at  Waltham  in  1704  ;  assistant  pastor  at 
Medway  for  five  years  from  June  25,  1788 ;  at  Marblehead ;  removed  to  Maine 
in  1798 ;  was  preceptor  at  Berwick  Academy ;  read  law  ;  became  a  judge,  and 
was  U.  S.  Marshal  for  the  District  of  Maine ;  died  in  1837.  See  Jameson,  Hist. 
of  Medway,  pp.  382,  383.  He  married  a  daughter  of  the  Rev.  Jonas  Clarke,  of 
Lexington,  in  whose  house  John  Hancock  and  Samuel  Adams  were  the  night 
Paul  Revere  gave  the  alarm.  Three  other  daughters  married  members  of  the 
*  B  K  Society,  the  Rev.  Dr.  Ware  (1785),  Rev.  Dr.  Fiske  (1785),  and  the  Rev.  Dr. 
Harris  (1786). 

8  Rev.  Aaron  Bancroft,  D.D.  (H.  C.  1778),  pastor  of  the  Unitarian  church  in 


28  DIARY  OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

Packard'^  of  Marlborough ;  and  Dr.  Barker,^  of  Hingham,  as  members 
of  the  Society  without  the  usual  forms.  On  account  of  the  Dudleian 
lecture  we  adjourn'd  the  meeting  till  five  o'clock,  when  we  again  met, 
but  there  being  no  further  business,  the  meeting  was  then  dissolved. 
The  lecture  was  preach'd  by  Dr.  Howard.^  The  subject  was  natural 
religion  and  his  text  was  from  \blank'\.  And  we  also  are  his  offspring. 
The  sermon  was  replete  with  sound  sense  and  a  wholesome  doctrine, 
as  all  the  sermons  that  I  ever  heard  from  this  gentleman  have  been. 
In  the  evening  I  called  at  the  President's  and  at  Mr.  Wigglesworth's, 
and  took  their  letters  for  Newbury-Port.  Lodg'd  at  college,  with 
Clarke. 

6th.  This  morning  after  breakfasting  with  Mr.  Andrews  I  walk'd 
leisurely  to  Boston.  Just  before  I  left  Cambridge  the  parts  for  exhibi- 
tion were  distributed ;  Charles  has  a  dialogue  with  Emerson.''  The 
circumstance  gave  me  more  pleasure  than  any  allotment  that  I  ever 
had  myself.  As  soon  as  I  arrived  in  Boston,  I  immediately  went  to 
Court,  and  found  them  engaged  upon  the  trial  of  one  John  Shehane  for 
burglary.  The  Attorney  General  ^  began,  in  behalf  of  the  Common- 
wealth. He  examined  his  witnesses  and  said  but  little,  observing  that 
he  should  wait  to  see  what  defence  the  counsel  for  the  prisoner  had  to 
make.     Mr.  Wetmore  ®  spoke  first  for  the  prisoner  ;  at  the  first  outset, 

Worcester  from  February,  1786,  until  liis  death,  August  19,  1839;  first  President 
of  the  American  Unitarian  Association  (1825-1836). 

1  Asa  Packard  (li.  C.  1783),  a  brotlier  of  J.  Q.  Adams's  classmate,  Hezekiah 
Packard,  born  in  Bridgewater,  May,  1758 ;  entereil  the  army  at  sixteen  as  a 
fifer;  wounded  at  Harlem  Heights;  was  a  pastor  at  JNIarlborough  from  March  23, 
1785,  to  May  12,  1819,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  moiitlis  at  the  time  wlien  the 
Unitarian  schism  occurred  ;  died  at  Lancaster,  March,  1843.  He  married  Nancy 
Quincy.     See  supra,  p.  22;  C.  Hudson,  Hist,  of  Marlborough,  p.  427. 

2  Dr.  Joshua  Barker  (H.  C.  1772),  a  physician  in  Hinghnm,  horn  March  24, 1753, 
at  Hingham;  died  April  2,  1800.  J.  Thacher,  American  Medical  Biography, 
vol.  i.  pp.  143,  144. 

8  Rev.  Simeon  Howard,  D.D.  (H.  C.  1758),  the  well-known  pastor  of  the  West 
Church  in  Boston,  who  liad  recently  (1785)  received  the  degree  of  S.T.D.  from 
Edinburgh  University.  The  text  was  Acts  xvii.  28.  "  Doctor  Howard  then 
delivered  an  excellent  sermon  [at  the  installation  of  Rev.  Jonathan  Burr  at 
Sandwicli]  to  tiie  general  satisfaction;  full  of  candor,  benevolence,  and  piety, 
with  the  most  liberal  sentiments."     April  18,  1787,  diary  of  J.  Q.  Adams. 

4  Rev.  William  Emerson  (11.  C.  1789),  only  son  of  Rev.  William  Emerson,  of 
Concord,  grandson  of  Rev.  Joseph  Emerson,  of  Maiden;  father  of  Ralph  Waldo 
Emerson;  pastor  of  the  First  Church  in  Boston  1799-1811.  Later,  when  a  resi- 
dent of  Boston,  J.  Q  Adams  attended  this  church,  and  September  13,  1807,  his 
son  Charles  Francis  Adams  was  baptized  by  William  Emerson,  —  receiving  his 
first  name  in  remembrance  of  the  Cliar'es  Adams  mentioned  in  the  text,  who  was 
no  longer  living.     See  Memoir  in  2  Mass.  Hist.  Coll.,  vol.  i.  pp.  254-258. 

5  Robert  Treat  Paine  of  Boston,  prosecutor  in  the  Boston  Massacre  trial  in 
1770;  signer  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence  ;  etc. 

6  William  Wetmore  (H.  C.  1770),  born  October  30,  1749,  in  Middletown,  Conn. ; 
for  many  years  an  attorney  at  Salem;  since  1786  a  "  Barrister  at  Law,"  residing 


DIAEY  OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  29 

he  attempted  to  address  the  passions  of  the  jury,  Mr.  Dawes  who  sat 
next  to  me  observ'd  that  this  was  a  bad  omen.  The  pathetic,  he  said, 
should  always  be  reserved  for  the  latter  part  of  the  plea.  A  man  should 
gradually  grow  warm  (said  he)  as  he  advances  in  his  subject ;  like  a 
wheel  which  acquires  heat  by  rolling.  The  evidence  which  Mr.  Wet- 
more  produced  was  very  favorable  to  the  prisoner.  If  true,  it  proved 
an  alibi ;  and  it  proved  likewise  that  Shehane  had  bought  the  arti- 
cles which  he  was  charged  with  stealing ;  but  they  told  so  many  dif- 
ferent stories,  and  the  Attorney  General  produced  such  evidence  that 
they  were  perjured,  that  I  think  no  stress  could  be  laid  upon  it.  Mr. 
Tudor  ^  spoke  much  at  length  in  the  afternoon ;  and  very  ably.  Mr. 
Paine,  closed  for  the  Commonwealth,  at  about  seven  in  the  evening. 
All  the  Judges  "  (there  were  four  present)  appeared  to  be  of  opinion  that 
the  prisoner  was  guilty.  At  half  past  eight,  the  jury  was  pack'd,  and 
the  Court  adjouru'd  for  an  hour;  but  the  jury  had  not  then  agreed  upon 
a  verdict;  upon  which  the  Court  adjourn'd  till  nine  o'clock  to-morrow 
morning.  I  was  so  entirely  engaged  the  whole  day  in  hearing  this  trial, 
which  was  very  interesting,  that  I  had  no  time  to  go  any  where  else. 
Between  ten  and  eleven  at  night  I  carried  my  bundle  to  Mr.  Colman's,^ 


in  1787  in  Boston  ;  later  a  Judge  in  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas  of  Suffolk  County 
aiKl,  after  tlie  reorganization  of  the  courts  in  1811,  of  tlie  middle  of  tlie  six 
circuits  into  wliich  Massacliusetts  was  divided — including  Suffolk,  Essex,  and 
Middlesex  counties  ;  he  died  November  19,  1830,  in  Boston.  W.  T.  Davis,  Hist. 
of  the  Judiciary  of  Mass.,  pp.  20-2--204,  1^20,  295-297,  308 ;  Fleet's  Almanack  for 
1787  gives  a  list  of  twenty  "Barristers  at  Law"  in  Massachusetts,  of  forty-nine 
"  Attornies  at  Law  practismg  at  the  Supreme  Judicial  Court,"  and  of  fourteen 
"  Attornies  practising  at  the  Common  Pleas."  Both  William  Tudor  and  William 
Wetmore  belonged  to  this  highest  order  of  "  Barristers,"  the  qualifications  of 
which  are  given  by  W.  T.  Davis  (pp.  295-297). 

1  William  Tudor  (1750-1819)  had  studied  law  under  John  Adams,  and  was  a 
classmate  and  intimate  friend  of  Theophilus  Parsons ;  later,  in  1802,  he  was  a 
colleague  of  J.  Q.  Adams  as  a  Commissioner  of  Bankruptcy  in  Massachusetts 
and  as  a  State  Senator.  He  was  one  of  the  founders  of  the  Massachusetts 
Historical  Society.  See  Memoir  by  his  son  in  2  Mass.  Hist.  Coll.,  vol.  viii.  pp. 
285-325;  also  1  Mass.  Hist.  Coll.,  vol.  vi.  pp.  149-154;  see  also  John  Adams, 
"Works,  vol.  X.  p.  432,  for  a  long  correspondence  from  1816  to  1819  on  the  history 
of  the  Revolution  ;   J.  Q.  Adams,  Memoirs,  vol.  i.  pp.  250,  253  ;  etc. 

2  In  1787  there  were  five  justices  on  the  Ijencli  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Massa- 
chusetts :  William  Cusliing,  of  Scituate ;  Nathaniel  Peaslee  Sargeant,  of  Haver- 
hill; David  Sewall,  of  York ;  Increase  Sumner,  of  Roxbury;  and  Francis  Dana,  of 
Cambridge;  the  latter  had  not  sufiiciently  recovered  from  his  illness  to  attend. 
Fleet's  Almanack  for  1787.  See  Proceedings,  xiii.  295,  296  for  brief  sketches  of 
the  members  of  the  Court. 

3  A  line  of  stages  ran  from  Casco  Bay  to  Georgia  three  times  a  week  ;  the 
stage  for  the  east  left  "  Col.  Colman's  adjoining  the  Mill  Bridge,"  i.e.,  the  bridge 
on  Hanover  Street  over  the  Mill  Creek  which  has  since  been  filled  in.  Fleet's 
Almanack  for  1788,  etc.  See  Winsor,  Memorial  Hist,  of  Boston,  vol.  ii.  p.  xiii, 
for  a  map. 


30  DIARY  OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

from  whose  house  the  stage  sets  off,  and  I  took  a  bed  there,  in  order 
to  be  ready  to  go  very  early  in  the  morning. 

7th.  At  three  in  the  morning  I  was  roused,  and  got  into  the  carriage 
in  company  with  a  merchant  of  Portsmouth,  and  a  sea  captain  of 
Nevvbury-Port,  lately  arrived  from  South  Carolina.  Nothing  very 
interesting  occurred  in  the  course  of  our  journey.  We  dined  at  Ipswich 
and  reach'd  Newbury-Port,  between  two  and  three  o'clo.  the  afternoon. 
After  taking  possession  of  my  room  at  Mrs.  Leathers's,  I  went  to  Mr.  Par- 
sons's  office,  where  I  found  Thomson  and  Townsend.^  I  soon  went  to 
see  my  friend  Little,  whom  I  found  at  Dr.  Swett's.^  I  pass'd  an  hour 
there,  and  then  went  with  Little,  and  deliver'd  the  chief  of  the  letters 
with  which  I  was  charged.  Little  came  home  with  me  to  my  lodgings, 
and  pass'd  part  of  the  evening  with  me.  As  I  was  up  so  early  in  the 
morning,  and  was  somewhat  fatigued  with  my  journey,  I  retired  early 
to  bed. 

8th.  I  arose  in  the  morning  quite  refresh'd,  and  immediately  after 
breakfast  went  and  took  my  station  in  the  office.  I  began  upon  the 
first  volume  of  Robertson's  History  of  Charles  the  V.^  which  Mr.  Par- 
sons recommended  as  containing  an  account  of  the  feudal  institutions, 
from  which  were  derived  many  of  the  laws  which  are  now  esrablished 
in  different  parts  of  Europe.  I  have  already  read  the  book ;  but 
thought  it  would  be  best  to  peruse  it  again.  I  was  no  where  this  day, 
except  at  the  office  and  my  lodgings.     Saturday  evening  :  rather  tedious. 

1  Horatio  Townsend  (H.  C.  178.3),  born  in  Medfield  March  29,  1763;  opened 
his  law  office  there ;  in  1791  his  name  appears  in  the  list  of  attorneys  practising 
at  the  Supreme  Court  of  Massachusetts  ;  in  1799  he  was  appointed  special  justice 
of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas  and  soon  after  clerk  of  the  Courts  ;  he  was  removed 
by  Governor  Gerry  in  1811 ;  was  re-appointed  the  next  year,  and  held  the  office 
till  his  death,  July  10,  1826.  His  residence  was  in  Dedham.  Hurd,  Hist,  of 
Norfolk  County,  p    15;  Tilden,  Hist,  of  Medfield,  p.  498. 

2  Dr.  John  Barnard  Swett  (H.  C.  1771),  descended  from  one  of  the  original 
grantees  of  Newbury,  but  born  at  Marblehead  June  1, 1752,  where  his  father  wa8 
a  merchant.  He  was  adopted  and  educated  by  his  great-uncle  the  Rev.  John 
Barnard,  of  Marblehead,  for  whom  he  was  named  and  who  grieved  when  he  failed 
to  become  a  minister.  He  studied  surgery  at  Edinburgh  for  three  years  under 
Dr.  William  CuUen,  living  there  at  the  time  of  Hume  and  Robertson  ;  served  as 
surgeon  on  an  expedition  to  tlie  Falkland  Islands ;  visited  the  hospitals  of  France 
and  England;  returned  to  America  in  1778;  served  as  a  surgeon  in  the  army 
under  General  Sullivan  in  Rhode  Island  and  in  the  expedition  to  the  Penobscot, 
returning  from  the  latter,  after  the  destruction  of  the  fleet,  on  foot  to  the  Kenne- 
bec;  settled  in  Newbury  in  1780.  He  died  in  August,  1796,  in  combating  an 
epidemic  of  yellow  fever  that  was  terrorizing  the  town.  He  was  a  member  of 
the  American  Academy  of  Arts  and  Sciences ;  Corresponding  Secretary  of  the 
Massachusetts  Medical  Society;  and  took  a  very  active  interest  in  the  fraternity 
of  Freemasons  at  Newburyport.  James  Thacher,  American  Medical  Biography, 
vol.  ii.  pp.  lOG-110  (article  signed  D.  A.  T.  —  is  this  Dudley  Atkins  Tyng?). 

Little  was  studying  medicine  in  Dr.  Swett's  office. 

3  The  first  edition  was  published  in  1769. 


DIAEY  OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  31 

9th.  I  did  not  attend  meeting  this  day,  for  several  reasons.  At  home 
the  whole  day ;  it  was  extremely  long  and  tedious.  I  amused  myself 
with  reading  in  tlie  first  volume  of  Blair's  ^  lectures.  I  have  already 
perused  the  work ;  but  1  think  it  deserves  a  second  reading.  Retired 
early  to  bed,  merely  from  ennui. 

10th.  Attended  at  the  olfice  the  whole  day.  Continued  Robertson. 
Thomson  engaged  this  morning  to  take  the  charge  of  one  of  the  town 
schools,^  for  a  year.  It  will  interfere  very  much  with  his  attendance 
at  the  office.  His  father,^  who  is  very  rigid  in  his  religious  ojjiuious, 
and  probably  entertains  an  unfavourable  idea  of  the  profession  of  the 
law,  is  very  averse  to  his  son's  engaging  in  it ;  and  takes  every  oppor- 
tunity he  can  to  discourage  his  son  from  the  study ;  and  it  is  supposed 
he  took  this  method  among  others  to  draw  off  his  attention  from  this 
pursuit.  But  he  will  certainly  fail  in  the  attempt,  and  I  doubt  whether 
Thomson  will  keep  the  school,  more  than  half  the  year  through.  In 
the  afternoon  we  walk'd  to  Mr.  Atkins's,  and  found  Mr.  John  Tracy  * 
with  him ;  we  pass'd  part  of  the  evening  at  Mr.  Tracy's  house.  I 
there  met  with  a  French  gentleman  with  whom  I  convers'd  about  half 
an  hour.     Return'd  home  between  eight  and  nine  in  the  evening. 

11th.  Thomson  began  his  attendance  upon  the  school  this  morning 
and  attended  at  the  office  all  the  leisure  time  he  had.     If  he  should 

1  Lectures  on  Elietoric  and  Belles  Lettres  by  the  Rev.  Hugh  Blair,  D.D., 
pastor  of  the  High  Church  in  Edinburgh  and  a  lecturer  at  tlie  University.  Lon- 
don, 1783,  2  vols. 

-  The  North  School  on  Bartlett's  Lane,  now  Winter  Street.  The  building  is 
still  standing,  having  been  a  dwelling-house  since  1826.  S.  A.  Emery,  Reminis- 
cences of  a  Nonagenarian,  p.  220;  J.  J.  Currier,  "Quid  Newbury,"  p.  613. 

2  Deacon  Thomas  Thompson  (about  forty-five  years  of  age)  was  a  deacon  in 
the  church  of  the  Rev.  Samuel  Spring  —  the  Second  Congregational  or  "  North" 
Church  in  Newburyport  —  the  one  formed  in  1769  by  the  amicable  withdrawal 
of  the  more  ortliodox  from  the  "  First  Religious  Society  of  Newburyport,"  on  the 
installation  of  the  Rev.  Thomas  Cary.  Samuel  Spring,  Discourse  delivered 
Jlarch  13,  1808,  in  consequence  of  the  death  of  Deacon  Thomas  Thompson; 
The  One  Hundred  and  Fiftieth  Anniversary  of  the  First  Religious  Society,  pp. 
28,  29,  etc. 

4  John  Tracy  (H.  C.  1771),  in  1787  a  man  of  thirty-four;  born  April  19.  1753, 
married  in  1775;  a  Justice  of  the  Peace;  an  Adjutant-General  of  the  militia;  a 
member  of  St.  John's  Lodge  of  Free  and  Accepted  Masons,  a  vestryman  in  St. 
Paul's  (Episcopal)  Church  for  over  thirty-five  years;  died  March  1, 1815.  He  had 
seen  a  brief  service  in  the  army  under  General  Sullivan  in  Rhode  Island,  and 
like  his  brother,  Nathaniel  Tracy,  had  prospered  as  a  merchant  during  the  early 
days  of  the  war  and  later  lost  heavily.  Yet  he  still  dwelt  on  aristocratic  High 
Street  in  one  of  its  finest  residences,  secured  to  his  children  by  his  father. 
Judge  John  Lowell  built  this  house,  the  duplicate  of  the  "  Timothy  Dexter 
House,"  which  stands  beside  it.  Rev.  David  Tappan,  pastor  at  West  Newbury, 
and  Dr.  J.  B.  Swett  were  his  classmates;  see  supra,  pp.  12,  30.  See  Currier, 
"Ould  Newbury,"  pp.  548,  577-584.  Illustrations  of  both  houses  will  be  found 
there. 


32  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

make  a  practice  of  this  it  must  necessarily  be  essentially  injurious  to 
his  health.  I  dined  this  day  with  Townseud  ;  pass'd  the  evening  at 
home  in  reading  and  writing, 

12th.  Training  day  for  the  alarm  list.  From  sixteen  to  sixty  years 
the  iidiabitants  of  this  Commonwealth  are  subjected  to  the  duties  of 
militia-men.  As  a  student  of  Harvard  University,  I  shall  be  exempted 
for  three  years,  for  all  the  sons  of  Harvard  are  considered  as  students 
at  that  seminary  uutill  they  commence  masters  of  arts.  This  forenoon 
I  finish'd  the  first  volume  of  Kobertsou's  Charles  V.  and,  as  I  read  now 
in  connection  with  my  studies,  I  shall  not  proceed  with  the  other  vol- 
umes. In  the  afternoon  I  took  up  Vattel's  ^  Law  of  Nature  and  of 
Nations. 

loth.  Dined  with  Dr.  Kilham  ^  at  Mr.  Carter's.  This  is  a  very 
friendly,  obliging  old  gentleman,  about  seventy-three  years  of  age,  as  I 
collected  from  his  conversation.  He  is  very  sociable,  and  is  a  great  gen- 
ealogist. He  gave  me  a  much  more  circumstantial  account  of  my  an- 
cestry, for  four  or  five  generations  back,  than  I  had  ever  known  before; 
and  I  am  told  he  can  give  the  same  kind  of  information  to  almost  any 
body  else.  He  has  two  sons  with  him  ;  both  I  believe  between  twenty- 
five  and  thirty  years  old  and  one  daughter.^  One  of  his  daughters  was 
married  in  the  beginning  of  the  summer,  to  Mr.  W.  Smith  of  Boston  ; 
and  his  eldest  son  pi-oposes  to  be  married  in  the  spring  to  Miss  Eppes 
Cutts,  who  has  made  her  appearance  heretofore  in  this  journal.  Her 
sister,  Miss  Nancy  Cutts,  is  now  upon  a  visit  at  Mr.  Carter's,  and  dined 
with  us.     I  think  she  is  handsomer,  and  that  her  manners  are  easier 

1  Vattel,  Le  droit  des  gens,  etc.    Neufchatel,  1758. 

2  Dr.  Daniel  Kilham  (H.  C.  1777),  a  fellow  boarder  at  Mrs.  Leathers 's.  Born 
at  Wenliam,  he  was  prepared  for  college  at  Duiniiier  Acadcni}',  studied  medicine 
with  Dr.  Holyoke,  of  Salem,  disliked  the  work  of  liis  profession,  and  decided  to 
be  an  apothecary  at  Newburyport.  In  1801  lie  retired  in  ill  health  to  his  farm 
in  Wenliam;  died  October  12,  1841,  aged  eighty-eight ;  was  never  married.  He 
was  one  of  the  founders  of  the  American  Academy  of  Arts  and  Sciences.  See 
M.  0.  Allen,  Hist,  of  Wenliam,  pp.  145-148. 

3  Mary  Carter  married  Edward  Cutts,  brother  of  Miss  Eppes  Cutts,  April  17, 
1796;  lived  in  Portsmouth,  N.  H. ;  died  in  North  Hartland,  Vt.,  March  11,  1840, 
aged  seventy-four.  Nathaniel  Carter,  Jr.,  married  Eliza  Eppes  Cutts  I\Iay  1, 
17«8;  died  in  Kennebunk  June  10, 1842.  His  wife  was  born  in  Portsmouth,  N.  H., 
May  5,  1765,  and  died  in  Kennebunk  June  23,  1857.  Anna  Holyoke  Cutts,  boru 
in  November,  1767;  died  August  30,  1788.  C.  H.  C.  Howard,  Genealogy  of  the 
Cutts  Family,  pp.  42,  43,  79,  80.  Tiie  younger  son  of  Mr.  Carter  was  probably 
Mr.  Joshua  Carter,  a  ship-owner  in  Newburyport,  who  represented  the  town  in 
the  Legislature  in  1799,  and  took  an  active  part  in  the  erection  of  a  new  meet- 
ing-house for  the  First  Parish  Church  in  1800.  J.  J.  Currier,  "Ould  Newbury," 
pp.  442,  445,  711,712;  Hurd,  Hist,  of  Essex  County,  p.  1741.  William  Smith 
(H.  C.  1775),  son  of  Isaac  and  Elizabeth  (Storer)  Smith,  born  June  19,  1755,  in 
Boston;  married  Hannah  Carter;  died  April  6,  1816;  a  merchant  in  Boston, 
having,  in  1789,  a  store  on  State  Street  and  a  house  on  Court  Street;  a  kinsman 
of  Mrs.  Abigail  Adams;  a  brother  of  Key.  Isaac  Smith  (see  supra,  p.  20). 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  83 

than  those  of  her  sister.  How  the  comparison  might  be  in  mental  qual- 
ifications I  ara  not  able  to  decide.  I  was  alone  this  afternoon  in  the 
office,  as  Townsend  and  Thomson  were  both  goue  to  see  the  mana3uvres 
of  the  four  companies  of  militia  of  the  train  baud,  who  were  this  day 
formiug  themselves  for  soldiers.  In  the  evening  I  pass'd  an  hour  at  Mr. 
Tufts's.     Mrs.  Tufts  is  very  uuwell. 

14tii.  The  weather  for  this  week  past  has  been  from  day  to  day 
alternately  very  warm  and  very  cold.  These  sudden  transitions,  which 
in  this  country  are  very  common,  are  almost  too  powerful  for  our  con- 
stitutions :  to  foreigners  they  are  almost  intolerable,  and  I  believe 
even  the  inhabitants,  who  from  their  birth  have  been  used  to  them, 
suffer  more  from  them  than  they  are  aware.  This  forenoon  I  received 
a  letter  from  my  friend  Forbes,  enclosing  one  for  Miss  Jones,  and  in 
the  evening  I  called  and  delivered  that  which  was  consigned  to  my  care. 
Mr.  Parsons  arrived  just  before  dark  from  Boston,  and  was  the  bearer 
of  a  sliort  letter  from  Cranch.  The  Supreme  Court  have  adjourn'd 
from  Boston  till  some  time  in  December.  Shehane,  the  fellow  whose 
trial  I  attended,  was  found  guilty,  and  is  now  under  sentence  of  death. 
But  all  the  prisoners  who  were  convicted  of  treason  have  received  a 
full  and  free  pardon.  Is  it  much  to  the  credit  of  our  government  that  a 
man  who  has  stole  30£  worth  of  plate  should  die  for  the  offence,  while 
others  commit  treason  and  murder  with  impunity  ?  ^  I  pass'd  the  even- 
ing and  supp'd  with  Townsend.  We  amused  ourselves  by  playing 
backgammon.     At  about  ten  I  retired  home. 

loth.  Dined  with  Townsend  and  Thomson  at  Mr.  Parsons's.  I 
finished  this  day  the  first  volume  of  Vattel.  The  first  book  treats 
of  the  duties  of  a  "nation  with  respect  to  itself :  the  second  of  its  obli- 
gations towards  others.  His  sentiments  and  principles  appear  to  be 
dictated  by  good  sense  and  real  virtue.  They  appear  all  to  derive  from 
that  law  of  nature,  which  every  person  of  common  sense  and  common 
honesty  must  wish  to  prevail :  —  Do  as  you  would  be  done  by.  Mr. 
Parsons  endeavoured  to  persuade  Thomson  to  give  up  his  school ;  he 
told  him  it  would  infallibly  either  murder  his  health  or  his  studies ;  he 
himself  had  tried  it  for  two  years  and  it  had  almost  ruin'd  him.  My 
trunks  at  length  arrived  from  Boston,  and  I  shall  at  least  have  more 

1  The  allusion  is  to  the  exercise  of  general  clemency  on  the  part  of  Governors 
Bowdoin  and  Hancock  to  those  concerned  in  what  is  known  as  Shays's  Rebellion. 
This  uprising  had  been  suppressed  during  the  month  of  February,  1787.  The 
trials  of  those  concerned  in  it  took  place  during  the  following  March,  and  four- 
teen were  convicted  and  sentenced  to  death.  Eight  were  pardoned,  and  the 
remainder  reprieved  by  Governor  Bowdoin  during  his  term  of  office.  Governor 
Bowdoin  was  succeeded  by  Governor  Hancock  in  May,  1787,  and  a  final  pardon 
was  issued  by  him  on  the  12th  of  September,  two  days  before  the  date  of  the 
entry  in  the  text,  covering  the  cases  of  nearly  all  under  sentence.  See  Barry, 
Hist,  of  Mass.,  vol.  iii.  p.  255 ;  Fiske,  Critical  Period,  pp.  183,  18i ;  Minot,  Hist, 
of  the  Insurrections  in  Massachusetts  in  17a6,  pp.  171-188. 

5 


34  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

convenience  than  I  have  as  yet  had  here.  Little  pass'd  the  evening 
with  me  at  my  lodgings  ;  and  his  company  is  always  agreeable.  I 
received  a  letter  from  Braintree.  The  French  fleet  have  received 
orders  to  sail  immediately  for  Brest,  and  it  is  added  they  are  enjoined 
to  avoid  all  English  fleets.  It  is  conjectur'd  that  the  affairs  in  Holland 
are  now  arrived  at  a  crisis,  and  it  is  not  improbable  that  England  and 
France  will  support  the  opposite  parties.-^ 

IGth.  I  took  a  walk  this  morning  as  far  as  Dr.  Tucker's  meeting 
house ;  ^  but  it  was  to  little  purpose,  unless  the  exercise  of  the  walk 
was  suflliciently  beneficial  to  me  to  compensate  my  trouble,  for  Mr. 
Kimball  happened  to  preach,  and  delivered  the  same  sermon  which  I 
heard  him  read  at  Haverhill  four  weeks  ago.  As  I  did  not  incline 
to  hear  the  afternoon  sermon  twice,  I  attended  at  Mr.  Carey's.^  This 
gentleman  is  a  good  preacher ;  but  appears  extremely  indolent.  His 
manner  is  also  far  from  being  graceful.  After  meeting  I  went  with 
Dr.  Kilham  to  his  shop ;  and  he  lent  me  a  number  of  pieces  of  good 
music.  He  has  a  very  pretty  taste  in  this  art,  though  he  does  not 
perform  upon  any  instrument.  Just  before  dark  I  took  a  walk  with 
Townsend,  and  called  in  at  Mr.  Atkins's.  He  himself  was  not  at  home ; 
his  mother  and  sister  were.*     Mrs.  Atkins  is  a  very  sensible,  agreeable 

1  See  Lecky,  Hist,  of  England  in  the  Eighteenth  Century,  vol.  v.  p.  78.  No- 
vember 10, 1785,  a  treaty  of  alliance  was  formed  between  France  and  Holland,  as  a 
result  of  the  enmity  which  had  sprung  up  between  England  and  Holland  during  the 
American  war.  The  Prince  of  Orange,  the  hereditary  Stadtholder,  favored  P"ng- 
land.  September,  1786,  as  a  result  of  difficulties  in  Holland,  the  States  deprived 
the  Prince  of  the  military  authority.  In  June,  1787,  they  arrested  the  Princess  of 
Orange  on  the  way  to  tlie  Hague.  Her  brother,  Frederick  William  II.,  king  of 
Prussia,  interfered;  and  the  day  after  this  entry  in  the  diary  (September  16) 
Utrecht  surrendered  to  the  Prussian  army  without  any  attempt  at  defence. 
Prussia  and  England  guaranteed  the  hereditary  stadtliolderate ;  and,  for  the 
moment,  English  influence  became  predominant  over  French  influence  in  the 
Netherlands. 

2  Dr.  Tucker's  meeting-house  was  in  Newbury,  about  a  mile  from  New- 
buryport.  It  was  the  first  church  in  the  town.  See  J.  J.  Currier,  Hist,  of 
Newbury,  pp.  335-344;  Rev.  John  S.  Popkin,  Sermons  preached  May  4  and 
September  17,  1806. 

3  The  Rev.  Thomas  Cary  (H.  C.  1761),  born  in  Charlestown  in  1745,  had  been 
the  pastor  of  the  first  parish  in  Newburyport  for  nearly  twenty  j-ears.  This  was 
the  church  over  which  the  Rev.  John  Lowell,  ancestor  of  the  Lowell  famih'-  of 
Massachusetts,  had  been  the  first  pastor  and  to  which,  in  the  present  century, 
Colonel  T.  W.  Higginson  and  Rev.  R.  C.  Waterston  gave  brief  periods  of  service. 
On  the  settlement  of  Mr.  Cary,  an  Arminian  and  Calvinist  schism  took  place, 
the  church  losing  a  third  of  its  members  who  were  Calvinistically  inclined. 
The  legal  profession  was  well  represented  here  —  Judge  Bradbury,  Judge  Green- 
leaf,  and  Mr.  Theophilus  Parsons  being  members  of  the  congregation.  See  Anni- 
versary of  the  Meeting  House  of  the  First  Religious  Society  in  Newburyport, 
October  31,  1901 ;  Currier,  "  Ould  Newbury,"  pp.  430-447  ;  etc. 

«  Dudley  Atkins  (H.  C.  1781)  changed  his  name  in  1790  to  Dudley  Atkins 
Tyng  to  inherit  from  Sarah  Tyng  Winslow  an  estate  in  Tyngsborough.    In  1787 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  35 

old  lady,  whose  conversation  unites  the  vivacity  of  youth  with  the 
sound  judgment  of  experienced  age.  Her  daughter  appears  to  be 
about  twenty.  She  may  be  more,  or  less,  for  near  that  period  of  life 
the  countenance  retains  nearly  the  same  appearance  longer,  perhaps, 
than  at  any  other  age.  She  has  fine  eyes,  and  a  very  pleasiug  symmetry 
of  features  ;  but  not  an  handsome  set  of  teeth.  We  past  about  an  hour 
there ;  Townsend  stopp'd  at  my  lodgings,  and  tarried  the  remainder  of 
the  evening  here.  I  received  a  couple  of  letters  from  Cambridge  ; 
one  from  Packard,  and  the  other  from  Clarke,^  who  is  now  a  Senior. 
Retired  late. 

17th.  Three  of  us  in  the  office  were  employ'd  the  whole  day  in  tak- 
ing copies  of  the  writs  which  are  to  be  entered  at  the  next  Court,  which 
will  sit  in  this  town  next  week.  General  Freeman  ^  pass'd  through 
town  this  day,  and  came  to  visit  Mr.  Parsons.  In  the  afternoon  I  took 
a  walk  with  Little.     At  home  all  the  evening.     Weather  very  cold. 

18th.  We  had  some  more  writing  to  do  this  forenoon.  Mr.  Parsons 
went  to  Exeter,  where  the  Supreme  Court  for  the  State  of  New  Hamp- 
shire are  now  sitting.  At  twelve  o'clock,  I  attended  Townsend  before 
Mr.  Justice  Tracy.  One  M'Intier  had  prosecuted  a  Sarah  Bayley  for 
defamation  in  saying  that  he  was  a  thief.  The  parties  could  not  agree. 
They  had  not  their  evidence  ready,  and  the  Court  was  adjourned  till 
three  o'clock.     Townsend  and  I  dined  with  his  worship.     Mrs.  Tracy  * 

he  was  twenty-seven  years  of  age  and  a  Justice  of  the  Peace.  Descended  from 
Governor  Dudley,  he  had  been  a  tutor  in  the  family  of  Mrs.  Selden  of  Virginia, 
and  studied  law  under  her  brother,  Judge  Mercer.  His  father,  Dudley  Atkins, 
represented  Newburyport  in  the  Legislature  at  the  time  of  the  Stamp  Act,  but 
was  a  royalist ;  his  house,  it  is  said,  would  liave  been  mobbed  except  for  the 
presence  of  mind  and  tact  of  his  wife,  Sarah  Kent  Atkins.  She  was  left  a  widow 
with  six  children  in  1767,  struggled  many  years  against  poverty,  lost  one  son  at 
sea,  and  saw  two  daughters  married.  Recently  she  had  purchased  a  house  in 
Newburyport,  where  she  lived  with  a  son  and  a  daughter,  Rebecca.  She  died 
October  16,  1810.  Rebecca  Atkins,  born  March,  1767,  died  unmarried,  June  23, 
1842,  lived  on  High  Street,  and  was  known  as  the  "  friend  of  all  the  young  people  of 
the  town."  In  1795  D.  A.  Tyng  was  appointed  by  Washington  Collector 
of  the  Port  of  Newburyport,  but  lost  the  place  under  the  Jeffersonian  regime ;  is 
best  known  as  reporter  of  the  decisions  of  the  Massachusetts  Supreme  Court 
from  1806  to  1822.  See  Memoir  by  his  friend  John  Lowell  in  3  Mass.  Hist.  Coll., 
vol.  ii.  pp.  280-205  ;  F.  H.  Atkins,  Joseph  Atkins  :  The  Story  of  a  Family,  pp. 
57,  87-96;  S.  A.  Emery,  Reminiscences  of  a  Nonagenarian,  pp.  106-168. 

1  Fdward  Clarke  (H.  C.  1788)  born  September  10,  1770,  in  Boston;  entered 
the  law  office  of  John  Lowell;  died  July  5,  1791,  at  Lancaster. 

2  General  Nathaniel  Freeman,  of  Sandwich,  a  well-known  Revolutionary 
patriot  and  versatile  man,  student  of  medicine  and  of  law,  distinguished  as  a 
physician,  an  orator,  and  a  soldier,  Brigadier-General  of  the  militia  of  Barnstable 
County  from  1781  to  1793.  His  son  Nathaniel  was  a  classmate  of  J.  Q.  Adams. 
See  supra,  p.  26. 

3  John  Tracy  married  Margaret  Laugh  ton  May  2,  1775.  She  was  born  May 
12,  1755,  and  died  November  9,  1806.  Currier,  "  Ould  Newbury,"  p.  579.  See 
also  p.  581  for  the  opinion  of  the  Marq^uis  de  Chastellux. 


'6Q  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

is  an  agreeable  woman,  still  handsome,  but  with  her  share  of  vanity. 
At  three  o'clock  the  Court  was  again  opened :  the  parties  had  agreed  to 
compromise  the  matter,  and  Bayley  is  to  pay  the  costs.  Neither  of 
them,  I  believe,  could  be  easily  defamed,  but  had  the  case  been  tried  I 
suspect  the  plaintiff  would  have  recovered  damages.  After  this  weighty 
affair  was  brought  to  a  conclusion,  1  took  a  walk  with  the  Squire  and 
Townsend  about  three  miles  out  of  town,  to  one  Sohier's,  where  we  eat 
a  couple  of  fine  muskmelons ;  it  was  dark  before  we  got  back  to  Mr. 
Tracy's.  We  stopp'd  there  and  play'd  backgammon  about  two  hours ; 
after  which  Townsend  and  I  returned  to  our  homes. 

19th.  The  equinoctial  storm,  which  has  been  gathering  in  the 
heavens  for  a  week  past,  has  now  appeared  with  all  its  violence  and 
rage.  Stedman  arrived  in  town  last  evening,  and  has  attended  in  the 
office  this  day.  He  brought  me  no  letters  from  Cambridge,  but  left  all 
friends  well.  We  had  a  violent  debate  in  the  OifK-.e,  between  Stedman 
and  Townsend,  upon  a  point  of  law.  The  contest  began  by  a  differ- 
ence of  opinion  between  Townsend  and  me.  Stedman  was  on  my  side 
of  the  question,  and  the  dispute  soon  center'd  in  them  ;  books  were 
produced  and  authorities  brought  which  both  parties  declared  to  be 
plump  in  their  favour  respectively.  Townsend  at  last  finding  three 
against  him,  (for  Thomson  had  sidtid  likewise)  got  out  of  patience,  and 
hinted  to  us  that  we  could  not  understand  the  meaning  of  the  terms, 
as  we  had  been  so  short  a  time  in  the  office ;  so  we  left  him  to  battle 
it  with  Stedman,  An  appeal  was  agreed  upon  to  Mr,  Parsons.  Town- 
send,  however,  after  shifting  his  ground  several  times  at  length  discov- 
ered that  there  was  nothing  in  the  case  but  a  misunderstanding  of 
words,  and  appears  at  present  to  give  up  the  point.  But  he  is  fond 
of  these  debates,  and  fonder  of  his  own  opinion.  Thomson  did  not 
appear  in  the  afternoon  ;  this,  however,  was  quite  peaceable.  The 
weather  was  such  as  rendered  a  fire  in  the  office  very  comfortable. 
I  was  at  home  all  the  evening,  reading  Rousseau's  confessions.-'^  This 
is  the  most  extraordinary  book  I  ever  read  in  my  life. 

20th.  I  expected  this  morning  when  I  waked  up  to  hear  the  winds 
whistle  and  the  tempests  roar ;  but  all  was  still  and  calm  ;  the  storm 
was  violent  but  short.  We  were  pretty  still  this  day  at  the  office ;  but 
four  at  a  time  is  certainly  too  many.  Some  one  or  other  of  us  is  talk- 
ing almost  all  the  time,  and  consequently  reading  does  not  proceed 
ra{)idly.  Little  came  and  pass'd  half  an  hour  with  me  in  the  evening; 
but  was  engaged  for  the  remainder  of  it.  I  copied  some  extracts,  and 
wrote  a  letter. 

21st.  Quite  still  in  the  office  this  day.  I  read  a  good  deal.  This 
afternoon  Amory  arrived ;  and  thus  we  are  all  five  here,  I  called  at 
Mr.    Carter's   and   desired   him    to   take   charge   of   a   letter   to    W. 

1  First  edition,  Geneva,  1782. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN'  QUINCY  ADAMS.  37 

Cranch.  I  pass'd  an  hour  or  two  with  Mr.  Tufts.  A  very  beautiful 
evening. 

22(i.  This  forenoon  I  finish'd  Vattel.  The  third  book  treats  of  "War, 
and  the  fourth  of  Peace  ;  much  in  the  same  manner  as  he  treats  the 
other  parts  of  his  subject.  "  Honesty  is  the  best  policy  "  says  nature  ; 
and  so  says  Vattel.  Mr.  Parsons  returned  from  Exeter  before  dinner. 
I  intended  to  have  gone  to  Haverhill  this  afternoon,  to  spend  the  Sun- 
day there ;  but  the  weather  was  such  as  threatened  a  storm,  and  I 
gave  up  my  plan.  I  went  up  with  Townsend,  Stedman,  Amory  and 
Stacey  ^  to  Sohier's  tavern  about  three  miles  out  of  town,  where  we  had 
some  fine  melons.  We  returu'd  in  the  dark.  I  pass'd  the  evening,  and 
supp'd  with  Townsend. 

23d.  Attended  upon  Mr.  Carey  the  whole  day.  His  manner  is  not 
very  agreeable  ;  but  his  stile  is  much  better  than  common.  Townsend 
called  here  in  the  evening.  Amory  set  off  this  morning  for  Boston. 
They  say  it  is  impossible  for  him  to  stay  three  days  at  a  time  in  one 
place.  He  has  been  absent  six  or  eight  months  and  promised  iMr,  Par- 
sons some  time  ago  that  he  would  come,  and  be  very  steady  all  through 
the  winter.  He  arrived  here  on  Friday,  has  not  yet  been  ten  minutes 
together  at  the  office,  and  now  is  gone  again.  He  is  gone  however  upon 
business,  and  intends  to  return  to-morrow. 

24th.  Townsend  went  to  Topsfield  to  hear  a  cause  tried  before  a 
justice.  Stedman  has  been  hunting  all  over  the  neighbourhood  for  his 
horse,  who  disappeared  on  Saturday.  Thomson  has  a  whole  week 
respite  from  his  school ;  but  did  not  come  to  the  office  in  the  afternoon. 
I  was  there  alone.  Amory  return'd  from  Boston  beween  four  and  five, 
and  at  about  six  set  off  for  Exeter.  To-morrow  he  goes  to  Portsmouth 
and  Wednesday  morning  he  intends  to  be  here  again.  Amidst  the  noise 
of  the  office,  which  was  greater  than  usual  because  this  is  the  last  day 
before  the  sitting  of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas  in  this  town,  I  made 
out  however  to  read  about  eighty  pages  of  Blackstone's  Introduction, 
and  making  a  few  extracts.  I  copied  others  in  the  evening  till  quite 
late,  and  at  this  moment  my  fingers  are  so  fatigued  with  writing  that 
I  positively  must  throw  by  my  pen. 

25th.  I  have  given  up  all  pretences  to  study  any  more  this  week. 
The  Court  of  Common  Pleas  sits  here  ;  and  I  shall  attend  that.  It 
was  near  one  o'clock  this  day  before  they  met,  and  then  they  immedi- 
ately adjourn'd  till  the  afternoon.  I  was  there  after  dinner.  Nothing 
was  done  but  calling  over  the  actions.     Judge  Greenl 

1  George  Stacey  (H.  C.  1784),  born  in  Ipswich;  studied  law;  died  1808. 

2  Judge  Benjamin  Greenleaf  (H.  C.  1751),  born  in  Newburyport  March  19, 
1732 ;  died  January  13,  1799.  Before  and  during  the  Kevoiutionary  War,  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Executive  Council ;  now,  1787,  Chief  Justice  of  the  Court  of  Common 
Pleas  for  Essex  County.    He  was  the  father-in-law  of  Theophilus  Parsons.    E.  V. 


38  DIAllY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

short  charge  to  the  grand  jury,  in  which  he  observed  to  them  that 
frequently  persons  were  charged,  by  malicious  enemies,  of  crimes 
whereof  they  were  entirely  innocent;  and  he  recommended  to  them  to 
be  upon  their  guard,  so  as  not  to  be  deceived  by  false  accusations  of 
that  nature.  The  Court  adjourned  by  five  o'clock.  I  went  and  took  a 
walk  with  Mr.  Symmes  ^  and  Towusend.  Symmes  was  sworn  in  at 
the  Court  of  Common  Pleas  this  time  last  year;  but  has  not,  I  believe, 
an  immediate  prospect  of  making  his  fortune  in  the  profession.  I  was 
with  Townsend  at  his  lodgings  till  between  seven  and  eight  o'clock. 
Mr.  Bradbury  ^  this  afternoon  told  me  a  piece  of  news  which  shock'd 
me  exceedingly,  —  that  S.  W.  was  rusticated ;  and  for  a  crime  which 
is  the  more  infamous  because  it  can  be  attributed  neither  to  youthful 
levity  nor  to  the  extravagance  of  ebriety. 

26th.  Attended  Court  the  whole  day.  Little  was  done  in  the  fore- 
noon except  calling  over  the  cases.  But  in  the  afternoon,  a  cause  was 
tried  by  jury,  between  one  Smith  and  James  Brown.  Smith  had 
attached  certain  lands  as  the  estate  of  Brown's  father,  to  satisfy  a  debt 
due  to  him :  Brown  claim'd  those  lands  as  his  property,  and  produced 
in  court  two  deeds,  by  which  his  father  had  made  over  the  lands  to 
him.  The  question  to  be  tried  by  the  jury  was,  whether  those  deeds 
were  valid,  or  whether  they  were  given  merely  to  evade  the  payment 
of  the  father's  debts,  and  in  order  to  secure  himself  a  maintenance 
during  the  remainder  of  his  life.  Mr.  Parsons,  for  the  plaintiff,  proved 
that  for  the  real  estate  of  the  father,  which  at  that  time  was  assessed  at 
£450,  James  had  only  allowed  him  about  230,  and  that  the  chief  of  this 

Smith,  Hist,  of  Newburyport,  p.  347;  J.  J.  Currier,  "Quid  Newbury,"  pp.  332, 
455 ;  J.  E.  Greenleaf,  Genealogy  of  the  Greenleaf  Family,  pp.  65,  150,  42G-428, 
etc.;  W.  T.  Davis,  Hist,  of  the  Judiciary  of  Mass.,  p.  130. 

1  William  Symraes  (H.  C.  1780)  had  been  a  law  student  with  Mr.  Parsons. 
The  son  of  the  Eev.  William  Symmes,  D.D.,  pastor  of  the  church  at  North 
Andover,  he  was  born  May  26,  17G0 ;  died  in  Portland  January,  1807  ;  never 
married.  On  November  15  of  this  year  (1787)  the  young  lawyer  wrote  his  well- 
known  letter  to  Peter  Osgood,  voicing  the  opposition  to  the  Federal  Constitution, 
and  yet  asking  for  it  a  candid  consideration.  His  reasoning  against  the  Constitu- 
tion secured  him  an  election  to  the  Massachusetts  Convention,  and  he  was  there 
one  of  the  ablest  and  most  interesting  opponents  of  its  adoption  in  its  existing 
form.  After  the  introduction  of  amendments  subsequently,  by  Governor  Hancock, 
Mr  Symmes  withdrew  his  opposition,  and,  unlike  his  colleagues,  voted  for  the 
Constitution.  North  Andover  did  not  follow  his  lead,  became  strongly  anti- 
federal,  and,  it  is  said,  made  life  micomfortable  for  him,  so  that  he  removed  to 
Portland  as  early  as  1790.  See  speeches  of  January  22  and  February  6,  1787,  in 
Elliot,  Debates,  vol.  ii.  pp.  70-75,  172-174;  Memorial  Discourse  by  tiie  Hon. 
Nathan  Hazen  ;  Hurd,  Hist,  of  Essex  County,  pp.  1579-1581,1007,  1075-1077; 
Abiel  Abbot,  Hist,  of  Andover,  p.  149 ;  J.  A.  Vinton,  Symmes  Memorial,  pp. 
59-01. 

*  Probably  Theophilus  Bradbury,  whose  son  George  Bradbury  was  a  student 
in  Harvard  College.  S.  W.  was  for  some  years  a  teacher  in  Vermont ;  died  at 
the  age  of  seventy-nine  in  an  insane  asylum. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  39 

was  by  paying  debts  for  which  he  had  been  previously  bound  with  his 
father.  Mr.  Sullivan/  for  the  defendant,  endeavoured  to  show  that 
such  deductions  were  to  be  made  from  this  estate  as  would  reduce  it  to 
about  280£,  and  that  some  other  charges  ought  to  be  added  to  what 
James  had  allowed  his  father,  which  would  make  his  contract  quite 
equitable.  The  pleadings  were  very  interesting,  and  it  was  after  seven 
in  the  evening  before  the  case  was  given  to  the  jury.  The  Court  then 
adjourned  till  the  morning,  at  nine  o'clock, 

27th.  The  jury  upon  the  case  of  Smith  and  Brown  gave  their  verdict 
in  favour  of  the  plaiutitF,  and  declared  the  deeds  fraudulent.  The  next 
jury  case  which  came  on  was  between  William  Bartlett  and  Daniel 
Dodge,  both  of  this  town.  Dodge,  who  is  a  mason,  engaged  to  build 
and  plaister  a  brick  house  for  Bartlett  ^  at  a  certain  price,  in  the  year 

1  James  Sullivan,  forty-three  years  of  age,  a  Barrister  at  Law  resident  in 
Boston,  had  resigned  a  place  on  the  bench  of  the  Supreme  Court  to  practise  his 
profession,  and  was  already  well  known  as  a  member  of  the  Legislature,  of  the 
Executive  Council,  and  of  tlie  Congress  of  the  Confederation.  Later  he  was 
Attorney-General  (1790-1807)  and  Governor  of  Massachusetts  (1807-1808).  la 
1793,  when  the  question  of  the  neutrality  between  England  and  France,  the 
guarantee  of  the  West  India  Islands,  the  reception  of  Genet,  and  the  revocation 
of  the  exequatur  of  Consul  Dupiaine  were  being  agitated,  J.  Q.  Adams  wrote 
two  series  of  essays  in  the  Boston  "  Centiuel "  under  tlie  signatures  of  Marcellus 
and  Columbus.  James  Sullivan,  then  Attorney-General,  replied  in  the  "  Chron- 
icle "  under  the  signatures  of  Junius  and  Americanus.  J.  Q.  Adams  retorted 
under  the  signature  of  Barneveldt ;  and  the  highly  controversial  papers  of 
Americanus  and  of  Barneveldt  often  appeared  in  the  same  issue.  Attorney- 
General  Sullivan  was  not  offended  by  this  sharp  criticism,  but,  on  the  contrary, 
employed  the  young  and  waiting  lawyer  in  several  cases.  Their  support  of 
Jefferson's  embargo  policy  produced  political  as  well  as  personal  friendliness  be- 
tween the  two,  when  J.  Q.  Adams  was  a  Senator  and  James  Sullivan,  Governor 
of  Massachusetts  ;  when  Governor  Sullivan  died,  J.  Q.  Adams  was  requested  by 
the  family  to  prepare  an  obituary  notice,  wiiich  appeared  in  the  "  Chronicle  "  oa 
the  day  of  the  funeral,  and  has  been  reprinted  by  T.  C.  Amory  in  his  Life  of 
James  Sullivan,  vol.  ii.  pp.  320-325.  See  J.  Q.  Adams,  Memoirs,  vol.  i.  pp.  27, 
28,  502,  542;  T.  C.  Amory,  Life  of  James  Sullivan,  vol.  i.  pp.  288-290;  vol.  ii. 
p.  318.  James  Sullivan  was  the  first  president  of  the  Massachusetts  Historical 
Society.  See  2  Mass.  Hist.  Coll.,  vol.  1.  pp.  252-254 ;  also  T.  C.  Amory,  vol.  ii. 
p.  157.     See  infra,  p.  56. 

2  William  Bartlett  (1748-1841),  from  a  poor  boy  apprenticed  to  learn  a  trade, 
was,  at  forty,  one  of  the  wealthiest  merchants  and  ship-owners  in  Newburyport. 
A  man  of  an  iron  constitution  and  of  a  sturdy  and  unyielding  Calvinism,  as  "a 
matter  of  conscience  "  strictly  demanding  "  from  the  poor  as  well  as  rich,  a  prompt 
compliance  with  contracts,"  he  was  a  munificent  donor  to  Andover  Theological 
Seminary,  and  was  even  ready  to  release  freely  a  promising  apprentice  lilie  Pat- 
rick Tracy  Jackson  that  he  might  better  his  fortunes  by  a  voyage  to  India. 
E.  V.  Smith,  History  of  Newburyport,  pp.  349-351 ;  J.  J.  Currier,  "  Quid  New- 
bury," pp.  162,  709-712.  Mr.  Eben  F.  Stone,  at  the  Two  Hundred  and  Fiftieth 
Anniversary  of  the  Settlement  of  Newbury  (p.  100),  noted  that  Newburyport  at 
this  time  possessed  two  classes  of  rich  men,  —  Dalton,  Hooper,  Tracy,  Jackson, 
John  Coffin  Jones,  men  of  wealth  and  of  education,  living  in  ease  and  elegance 


40  DIARY  OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  ' 

1778.  In  the  course  of  his  doing  the  work  the  paper  currency  depre- 
ciated considerably,  and  the  question  now  is  whether  Dodge  is  to  be 
held  to  the  original  sum,  or  whether  the  monies  he  received  at  different 
times  is  to  be  reduced  by  the  scale  of  depreciation  at  those  times.  Par- 
sons was  for  the  plaintiff,  Bradbury  ^  for  the  defendant.  Parsons,  in  the 
midst  of  his  plea,  broke  off  and  proposed  to  leave  the  matter  to  a  refer- 
ence. The  parties  agreed  ;  and  the  jury,  after  being  employ'd  four  or 
five  hours  upon  this  cause,  were  entitled  only  to  half-fees.  However, 
they  were  probably  gainers  by  the  circumstance,  for  the  case  was  so 
difficult  and  intricate  that  they  would  have  found  it  very  difficult  to 
agree  upon  a  verdict. 

After  this  was  over  two  negroes  and  two  white  men  were  arraigned 
for  different  thefts.  All  of  them  pleaded  guilty  ;  and  were  sentenced 
to  whipping,  hard  labour,  &c.  At  about  dusk  the  Court  adjourned  to 
nine  in  the  morning.  I  dined  at  Mr.  Tufts's.  Thomson,  Little,  and 
Putnam  passed  the  evening  with  me.  Putnam  came  to  apply  again 
for  admission  into  Mr.  Parsons's  office.  There  was  a  bar  meeting 
this  evening,  and  the  matter  was  to  be  laid  before  them.  I  saw  Mr. 
Thaxter  after  the  meeting  was  over,  but  he  would  not  tell  me  what  their 
determination  was. 

28th.  I  learnt  this  day  that  the  bar  determined  last  evening  to  abide 
by  the  rule  which  they  had  adopted  some  years  ago,  which  was  that 
there  should  not  be  more  than  three  students  in  an  office  at  once. 
Putnam  therefore  cannot  be  received  by  Mr.  Parsons.  I  understand 
he  has  this  day  applied  to  Mr.  Bradbury,  who  will  receive  him  imme- 
diately. Court  sat  all  day,  but  finally  adjourn'd  this  afternoon,  till 
next  April,  when  they  will  sit  at  Ipswich.  There  was  one  trial  by 
jury  this  forenoon.     It  was  between  Parson  Murray,'^  of  this  town,  and 

on  the  hillside ;  Bartlett,  Brown,  Coombs,  Marquand,  etc.,  the  new  rich  of  that 
daj,  building  their  homes  within  siglit  of  their  wharves  and  storeliouses. 

1  Thenpliilus  Bradbury  (H.  C.  1757),  Barrister  at  Law  and  Justice  of  the  Peace 
and  tlie  Quorum,  resident  at  Newburyport ;  later  member  of  Congress  (1795-1797) 
and  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Massachusetts  (1797-lbOo).  Theophilus 
Parsons  had  studied  law  in  his  office  in  Falmouth  (/.  e.  Portland)  before  it  was 
burnt  by  the  British  ;  after  that  both  men  returned  to  Newburyport. 

2  Rev.  John  Murray  was  the  pastor  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  of  Newbury- 
port, formed  in  response  to  the  preaching  of  George  Whitefield.  This  case  in 
the  law  court  was  an  incident  in  a  long  struggle  of  over  fifty  years.  In  1749 
Jonathan  Parsons,  then  pastor,  complained  in  a  letter  to  Elisha  Williams  in  Lon- 
don that  for  refusing  to  "  pay  taxes  to  ministers  on  whose  ministry  they  never 
attend,  they  were  '  dragged  about  upon  the  ground,'  'dressed  up  in  bearskins  and 
worried,'  were  thrown  upon  carts,  hauled  through  streets,  and  imprisoned  with  a 
—  '  Lie  there  till  you  have  paid  the  utmost  farthing.'  "  By  1704  the  question  was 
settled  so  far  as  the  inhabitants  of  Newburyport  were  concerned.  But  non- 
residents did  not  have  so  clear  a  case.  Their  rights  depended  here  upon  the  in- 
terpretation of  the  third  article  of  the  Declaration  of  Piglits  in  the  Constitution 
of  1780,  which  provided  "  that  the  several  towns,  parishes,  precincts,  and  other 


DIARY  OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  41 

the  inhabitants  of  Salisbury.  One  of  the  people  of  Salisbury  attended 
always  at  Mr.  Murray's  meeting,  but  was  assessed  iu  his  own  towu  : 
the  question  was  whether  his  tax  should  be  paid  to  Mr.  Murray,  or 
whether  it  should  go  to  the  support  of  the  minister  of  Salisbury.  ,The 
jury  brought  iu  a  verdict  in  favour  of  Mr.  Murray.  A  similar  case  has 
two  or  three  times  been  determined  iu  the  same  manner,  I  think  very 
improperly ;  and  so  thinks  Mr.  Parsons.  In  the  afternoon  a  man  was 
convicted  of  stealing  a  couple  of  sheep,  for  which  he  was  fined  thirty 
shillings.  Parsons  said  in  England  he  would  have  been  hung  ;  but  I  a 
little  doubt.  I  dined  at  Mr.  Carter's,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Smith  from  Boston 
were  there.  Mr.  Smith  brought  me  a  letter  from  W.  Crauch,  which 
gives  me  an  account  of  the  rustication  of  W.  The  circumstances  are 
much  to  his  disgrace.  I  had  likewise  a  letter  from  my  father,^  and 
one  from  my  mother,  of  the  18th  &  20th  of  July.  Some  letters  are 
yet  remaining.     Little  was  with  me  about  half  an  hour  this  evening. 

29th,  I  attended  at  the  office  the  whole  day,  and  resumed  Black- 
stone,  whom  for  three  or  four  days  I  had  laid  asidt^.  I  did  not,  how- 
ever, read  a  great  deal.  In  the  evening  I  took  something  of  a  long 
walk  with  Townsend;  and  as  I  returned  stopp'd  to  sup  upon  the  birds, 
which  Amory  and  Stacey  had  been  hunting  for  iu  the  course  of  the  day. 
There  were  three  other  gentlemen  there,  Mr.  Cothn,  Mr.  Wiuslow, 
and  a  Captain  Cochran.  We  got  to  singing  after  supper,  and  the 
bottle  went  around  with  an  unusual  rapidity,  untill  a  round  dozen  had 
disappeared.  I  then  thought  it  was  high  time  to  retreat,  and  with 
some  difficulty  slip'd  away  from  those  of  the  company  who  appeared  to 
be  the  most  inspired,  and  took  a  walk  with  Townsend ;  it  was  after 
one  in  the  morning  when  we  got  to  my  lodgings.  After  setting  there 
about  an  hour  and  smoking  a  pipe  or  two,  we  both  went  to  bed. 

SOth.  Although  I  had  not  last  night  been  guilty  of  an  excess  so  far 
as  to  be  intoxicated,  yet  I  had  not  sufficiently  consulted  what  my  feel- 
inga  would  be  this  day  to  be  entirely  prudent.  I  therefore  arose  this 
morning  with  a  very  disagreeable  head-ache,  which  continued  the  whole 

bodies  politic  or  religious  societies  shall  at  all  times  have  the  exclusive  right  of 
electing  their  public  teachers  and  contracting  with  them  for  their  support  and 
maintenance.  And  all  moneys  paid  by  the  subject  to  the  support  of  public  wor- 
ship, and  of  the  public  teachers  aforesaid,  shall,  if  he  require  it,  be  uniformly 
applied  to  the  support  of  the  public  teacher  or  teachers  of  his  own  religious  sect 
or  denomination,  provided  there  be  any  on  whose  instructions  he  attends.  Other- 
wise it  may  be  paid  toward  the  support  of  the  teacher  or  teachers  of  the  parish 
or  precinct  in  which  said  moneys  are  raised."  This  question  arose  again  in  1796 
as  to  some  inhabitants  of  Newbury  who  attended  church  in  Newburyport, 
and  it  was  then  settled  by  a  legislative  act  in  their  favor.  J.  J.  Currier,  "Ould 
Newbury,"  pp.  508-51?';  History  of  Newbury,  pp.  381-384 ;  H.  C.  Hovey, 
Origin  and  Annals  of  the  Old  South  First  Presbyterian  Church,  pp.  32,  33. 

1  John  Adams  was  in  London  as  Minister  Plenipotentiary  to  the  Court  of 
St.  James. 


42  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

day.  I  could  neither  attend  meeting  nor  read,  nor  write ;  and  pass'd 
the  day  with  much  tediousness.  In  the  evening,  however,  I  took  a  walk 
with  Tovvnsend ;  and,  after  returning,  pass'd  an  hour  at  Mr.  Tufts's. 

Monday,  October  1st,  1787. 

I  have  not  yet  got  over  the  consequences  of  our  frolick  on  Saturday 
evening.  Three  whole  evenings  I  have  by  this  means  entirely  lost;  for 
I  cannot  yet  write  with  any  comfort.  How  inseparably  in  all  cases  of 
intemperance  is  the  punishment  allied  to  the  fault !  Stedman  went 
this  day  for  Portsmouth  ;  will  return  here  to-morrow,  and  take  his  final 
leave  on  "Wednesday.  He  is  going  to  open  an  ofRce  at  Cambridge, 
where  I  heartily  wish  him  success.  In  the  afternoon  I  went  with 
Townsend  and  Thomson  and  Little  up  to  Sohiei-'s,  and  had  the  usual 
fare.  We  return'd  leisurely  in  the  evening.  I  was  too  much  fatigued 
to  write  much  ;  having,  withal,  a  little  of  the  head  ache.  Putnam 
arrived  in  town  this  afternoon,  and,  I  suppose,  will  enter  Mr.  Brad- 
bury's office  immediately.  I  shall  find,  I  believe,  very  much  the  want 
of  Mr.  Parsons's  presence,  when  he  goes  off.  His  attendance  upon  the 
Gen'I  Court  will  engross  his  time  very  much.  Next  week  he  will  go 
to  Boston,  and  will  be  gone,  I  suppose,  nearly  two  months.  There  are 
a  thousand  questions  which  I  shall  want  to  propose  to  him,  from  time 
to  time ;  but  which  I  shall  be  reduced  to  find  out  by  my  own  industry 
and  what  assistance  Townsend  and  Amory  can  give  me. 

2d.  I  have  at  length  recovered  my  usual  tone,  and  have  been  able 
this  day  to  attend  to  business  with  as  much  satisfiiction  as  common. 
Stedman  came  back  from  Portsmouth  this  afternoon.  In  the  evening 
I  carried  a  packet  of  letters  to  his  lodgings  for  Cambridge.  I  began  to 
copy  off  not  a  small  volume  of  forms  for  declarations.  This  is  a  piece 
of  drudgery  which  certainly  does  not  carry  its  reward  with  it.  But  it 
is  a  necessary  piece  of  work,  for  which  reason  I  think  the  sooner  it  is 
finished,  the  better.  I  was  in  hopes  before  I  came  here,  that  I  should 
have  time  for  reading  books  of  entertainment ;  but,  after  passing  eight 
hours  a  day  in  the  oflice,  and  spending  four  more  in  writing  minutes 
and  forms  at  home,  I  am  not  husband  of  time  sufficient  to  set  any 
more  apart  for  any  kind  of  mental  application.  And  indeed  if  for 
three  years  I  can  proceed  with  as  much  industry  as  I  have  done  since 
I  entered  the  office,  the  d — 1  will  be  to  pay  if  I  have  not  some  stock  of 
law.     Health  is  all  I  shall  ask. 

3d.  Continued  in  the  first  volume  of  Blackstone.  In  the  course  of 
my  reading  this  day  I  came  across  a  paragraph  which  surprized  me; 
it  was  this: — '^  It  is  a  principle  of  universal  law,  that  the  natural-born 
subject  of  one  prince,  cannot  by  any  act  of  his  own,  no,  not  by  swearing 
allegiance  to  another,  put  off  or  discharge  his  natural  allegiance  to  the 
former :  for  this  natural  allegiance  was  intrinsic  and  primitive,  and 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  43 

antecedent  to  the  other,  and  cannot  be  devested  without  the  concur- 
rent act  of  that  prince  to  whom  it  was  first  due."  I  enquired  of  Mr. 
Parsons  his  opinion  ujion  the  subject.  He  said  that  if  instead  of  uni- 
versal law  It  was  common  law,  the  assertion  would  be  just;  but  that, 
in  his  opinion,  by  the  law  of  nature  every  man  had  a  right  to  put  off 
his  natural  allegiance,  for  good  cause.  And  this  I  think  much  more 
reasonable  than  to  say  that  a  man  is  obliged  to  serve  and  assist  his 
sovereign,  however  cruel,  tyrannical  and  unjust  he  may  be.  Tlie  doc- 
trine of  Blackstone  must,  I  think,  imply  that  of  passive  obedience; 
which  is  not  now  to  be  refuted.  It  may  indeed  be  said  that  every 
unjust  act  is  a  tacit  consent  to  the  discharge  of  the  subject's  allegiance; 
but  this  is  straining  the  meaning  of  words  a  great  length ;  and  I  think 
it  is  much  the  best  to  cut  the  gordian  knot,  as  Mr.  Parsons  did.^  I 
wrote  along  in  the  evening  till  late. 

4th.  I  this  day  concluded  the  first  volume  of  my  author ;  and  em- 
ploy'd  all  the  afternoon  in  copying  from  it,  under  heads.  As  Parsons 
goes  to  Boston  next  week,  and  will  stay  there  so  long  that  I  shall  prob- 
ably finish  the  book  I  am  now  reading  before  he  returns,  I  enquired 
of  him,  what  would  be  best  to  take  up  next.  He  recommended,  Sulli- 
van's lectures,"  then  Wi'ight's  tenures,^  and  then  Coke-Littleton.^  This 
evening  I  was  at  Mr.  Tufts's;  present  at  the  marriage  of  his  daughter 
Dolly  to  Mr.  Geo.  Odiorne  of  Exeter.^  Mr.  Gary  perform'd  the  cere- 
mony. I  staid  there  to  supper,  but  came  away  soon  after  that,  as  I 
spent  my  time  rather  tediously.  Mercy  Brooks  ^  from  Medford  was 
there  :  she  is  one  of  the  very  few  unmarried  women  with  whom  I  can 

1  See  J.  Q.  Adams,  Memoirs,  vol.  iv.  pp.  146,  147,  for  an  application  of  this 
principle  by  him,  as  Secretary  of  State  in  President  Monroe's  Cabinet. 

-  Francis  S.  Sullivan  (University  of  Dublin),  Lectures  on  tlie  Constitution  and 
Laws  of  England,  etc.,  London,  1776,  2  vols.  —  a  second  edition,  revised  and  en- 
larged, of  a  work  published  in  1770,  and  entitled  "  An  Historical  Treatise  on  the 
Feudal  Law  and  tlie  Constitution  and  Laws  of  England,"  etc. 

"  Sir  Martin  Wright,  Introduction  to  the  Law  of  Tenures,  London,  1730. 

*  The  first  edition  of  Coke's  Commentaries  upon  Littleton  was  published  in 
1628.  Accordingly  it  had  been  a  legal  text-book  for  one  hundred  and  sixty  years 
at  the  time  of  this  entry.  As  the  standard  elementary  treatise  in  the  hands  of 
students  of  law,  the  Institutes  were  not  superseded  until  the  publication  of 
Blackstone's  Commentaries  in  1765-1769. 

5  "  Dorothy  Tufts,  eldest  daughter  of  Dr.  Samuel  Tufts  of  Newburyport," 
born  March  22,  1767  ;  married  George  Odiorne,  "  engaged  in  trade  "  at  Exeter, 
N.  H. ;  died  September  8,  1793.  Later  Odiorne  removed  to  Boston,  was  a 
bank  president  nine  years,  an  alderman  in  1823  and  1824 ;  and  one  of  fif- 
teen to  assume  responsibility  for  the  erection  of  Park  Street  Church ;  died  in 
Maiden  December  1,  1840.  J.  C.  Odiorne,  Genealogy  of  the  Odiorne  Family, 
pp.  74-83.  "  Mr.  Samuel  Tufts  "  was  on  the  Committee  of  Correspondence  and 
Safety  appointed  in  1774.     Hurd,  Hist,  of  Essex  County,  p.  1744. 

6  Mercy  Brooks,  born  September  3,  1763  ;  married,  March  6,  1788,  Cotton 
Tufts,  only  son  of  Dr.  Cotton  Tufts,  of  Weymouth.  See  supra,  p.  10,  note  1 ; 
Usher,  Hist,  of  Medford,  pp.  528,  564,  565. 


44  DIAEY  OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

be  sociable  after  a  short  acquaintance :  whether  it  is  owing  to  some 
peculiarity  of  circumstances  or  of  character,  I  know  not;  but  the  fact  I 
am  sure  of.  .   .    . 

5th.  After  writing  a  few  lines  in  my  common  place  book,  I  took  the 
second  volume  of  Blackstone,  which  treats  of  the  rights  of  things.  I 
did  not  read  much,  and  with  the  extracts  which  I  make  I  shall  not  be 
able  to  proceed  with  very  rapid  progress.  Thomson,  notwithstanding 
he  keeps  schools,  holds  an  equal  pace  with  me.  However  he  reads  in 
the  evening,  while  I  am  employ'd  in  copying  off  the  forms.  This  he 
has  already  done,  having  been  more  than  four  months  in  the  office.  I 
dined  at  Mr.  Tufts's.  The  new  married  pair  appeared  quite  calm  and 
composed.  In  the  afternoon,  before  it  grew  dark,  I  went  down  with 
Thomson,  and  found  Putnam  ;  with  him  we  went  to  Dr.  Swett's  and 
found  Little.  From  thence  we  retired  very  abruptly,  and  went  home 
with  Moses.  We  spent  the  evening  there  and  supped,  after  which  we 
all  returned  respectively  to  our  homes.  Here  I  sat  a  few  minutes  with 
Dr.  Kilham,  my  very  worthy  fellow  boarder,  and  then  retired  to  my 
room,  where,  what  with  copying  forms,  and  what  with  relating  the 
business  of  the  day,  I  have  almost  brought  it  to  one  in  the  morning. 

6th.  I  alter'd  my  plans  of  study,  and  determined  to  copy  forms  ia 
the  day  time,  because  I  can  do  it  notwithstanding  all  the  noise  that  may 
be  going  forward  in  the  office,  and  read  at  my  own  lodgings.  I  extract 
a  great  deal,  and  am  almost  tired  with  it,  but  Mr.  Parsons  advises  me 
by  all  means  not  to  give  it  up.  In  the  evening  I  received  a  long 
letter  from  my  sister,^  and  likewise  one  from  W.  Cranch. 

7th.  I  attended  at  Mr.  Carey's  meeting  all  day.  In  the  forenoon  he 
was  quite  severe  upon  all  persons  who  either  did  not  attend  divine  services 
so  steadily  as  they  might,  or  who,  being  at  the  house  of  the  Lord,  do  not 
behave  with  proper  decorum  and  respect.  No  person,  said  Mr.  Carey, 
who  is  going  into  the  presence  of  an  earthly  prince,  will  appear  in  a 
loose,  neglected  attire,  as  it  would  be  considered  as  a  mark  of  con- 
tempt, and  as  an  insult  to  the  dignity  of  the  sovereign.  Hence  he 
deduced  the  necessity  of  a  serious,  devout,  attentive  mind,  at  times 
when  we  go  more  immediately  into  the  presence  of  God.  His  conclu- 
sion, were  it  placed  as  a  distinct  proposition,  no  one  I  presume  would 
deny  ;  but  his  perfectly  stale  and  hackney'd  allusion  is  in  my  opinion 
not  only  false,  but  impious.  I  would  ask  Mr.  Carey,  why  it  is  neces- 
sary to  appear  with  such  an  accurate  precision  of  dress  at  the  Court  of 
an  earthly  prince  ?     What  other  cause  can  be  assigned  for  the  impor- 

1  Mrs.  Abigail  Adams  Smith,  only  sister,  of  J.  Q.  Adams,  two  years  liis  senior  ; 
born  July  14,  1705 ;  married  June  12,  1780,  Colonel  William  Stephens  Smith, 
who,  a  stranger  to  the  family,  liad  been  chosen  by  Congress  as  Secretary  of 
Legation  when  John  Adams  was  sent  as  Minister  to  England  in  1785;  she  died 
August  15,  1813.  John  Adams,  Works,  vol.  iii.  p.  398  ;  vol.  viii.  pp.  229,  423;  A. 
N.  Adams,  A  Genealogical  History  of  Henry  Adams,  etc.,  p.  407. 


DIAIiY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  45 

tance  of  a  thing  so  very  indifferent  iu  itself,  but  the  ridiculous  vanity 
and  fantastic  foppery  of  the  great  ?  It  is  impossible  to  deduce  an  argu- 
ment from  similarity  of  effect,  unless  a  like  similarity  of  cause  exists, 
and  in  this  case  the  supposition  is  not  to  be  made.  Iu  short,  if  our 
preachers  iu  general  would  not  take  so  much  pains  as  they  do  to  prove 
facts  which  no  man  iu  his  senses  can  deny,  they  would  save  themselves 
much  exertion  of  thought,  without  injuring  their  reputations.  In  the 
evening  I  went  with  Dr.  Kilham,  and  past  an  hour  or  two  at  Mr. 
Carter's ;  the  family  are  all  of  them  exceedingly  agreeable.  Miss  H. 
Emery  ^  was  there,  a  young  lady  with  a  beautiful  countenance,  an 
elegant  person,  and  (I  am  told)  an  amiable  mind.  "What  more  could 
any  person  wish  to  find  in  a  female?  a  fortune?  —  ah!  can  a  vile 
metal  drag'd  by  the  hands  of  slavery  from  the  bowels  of  the  earth 
be  put  in  competition  with  charms  like  those?  The  wretch  who  could 
harbour  the  idea  deserves  to  be  barred  forever  from  the  pleasures  of 
friendship  and  of  love. 

8th.  Attended  at.  the  office,  and  wrote  diligently  all  day.  Cold 
weather  coming  on  apace.  Thomson  and  I  had  some  conversation 
before  we  left  the  office  at  night.  He  is  iu  low  spirits,  and  sees  gloomy 
prospects.  I  hope  he  will  realize  more  happy  ones,  for  he  is  an 
amiable,  worthy  youth,  with  a  clear  head  and  a  sound  heart.  From 
the  office  we  went  to  Putnam's  lodgings.  There  Sam  and  I  play'd 
together,  he  on  the  violin,  I  on  the  flute,  for  a  couple  of  hours  ;  after 
which  we  sat  with  him  till  nine  o'clock  and  then  respectively  retired.  I 
sought  my  bed  quite  early  this  evening.  I  cannot  study  now  much  in 
my  own  room  for  want;  of  a  fire. 

9th.  I  received  a  short  letter  from  "W.  Cranch.  I  make  a  pretty 
rapid  progress  with  my  book  of  forms,  and,  if  I  am  not  interrupted,  I 
hope  to  finish  it  by  the  latter  end  of  next  week,  which  will  take  one 
heavy  load  from  my  shoulders.  Putnam  came  to  our  office  this  after- 
noon ;  he  and  Little  pass'd  the  evening  with  me.  I  intended  to  walk 
with  Little,  but  found  it  was  raining  hard.  I  proceed  very  slowly  with 
Blackstone. 

1  Hannah  Tracy  Emery,  descended,  it  is  clahned,  from  Governor  Thomas 
Dudley,  belonged  to  the  Newbury  branch  of  the  Emery  family;  born  at 
Exeter,  N.  H.,  March  7,  1771.  Her  father,  John  Emery,  was  lost  at  sea  during 
this  year  (1787);  her  grandfather,  Noah  Emery,  for  many  years  clerk  of  the 
House  of  Assembly  and  of  the  court  in  New  Hampshire,  died  the  following  Jan- 
uary (1788).  A  girl  of  "sweet  sixteen,"  she  was  living  with  her  mother  in  New- 
buryport.  Four  years  later  (November  1,  1791),  she  married  Benjamin  Abbot 
(H.  C.  1788),  for  fifty  years  principal  of  Phillips  Exeter  Acadetuy.  She  died 
December  6,  1793,  leaving  one  son,  Jolin  Emery  Abbot  (born  August  6,  1793, 
graduated  from  Bowdoin  College  in  1810,  succeeded  Dr.  Barnard  as  pastor  of 
the  North  Church  in  Salem  in  1815,  died  unmarried,  October  7,  1819;  a  volume 
of  his  sermons  has  been  printed,  with  a  memoir  by  Dr.  Henry  Ware,  Jr.).  Rufus 
Emery,  Genealogical  Records  of  Descendants  of  John  and  Anthony  Emery,  etc., 
pp.  326,  349,  40(3 ;  Abiel  Abbot,  etc.,  Register  of  the  Abbot  Family,  pp.  4,  5. 


46  DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

10th.  A  very  fine  day.  Amory  and  Townsend  with  a  number  of 
other  lads  went  out  of  town  this  afteruoon  upon  a  party.  But  I  did  not 
feel  disposed  to  join  them.     Thomson  spent  part  of  the  evening  with  me. 

11th.  This  afternoon  I  took  a  ride  with  Dr.  Kilham,  as  far  as  New- 
town to  see  Mr.  Dalton,  but  neither  he  nor  his  lady  were  at  home. 
We  rode  a  mile  or  two  beyond  that,  and  returned  just  after  dark. 
That  road  is  very  good  and  the  prospects  all  around  are  very  beautiful ; 
but  the  leaves  begin  to  fall,  and  the  year  appears  to  proceed  rapidly  on 
a  decline.     Amory  was  with  me  part  of  the  evening. 

12th.  The  day  pass'd  as  usual,  except  that  I  had  some  political  chat 
with  Mr.  Parsons.  He  favours  very  much  the  Federal  Constitution, 
which  has  lately  been  proposed  by  the  Convention  of  the  States.  Nor 
do  I  wonder  at  all  that  he  should  approve  of  it,  as  it  is  calculated  to 
increase  the  influence,  power  and  wealth  of  those  v/ho  have  any  already. 
If  the  Constitution  be  adopted  it  will  be  a  grand  point  gained  in  favour 
of  the  aristocratic  party.  There  are  to  be  no  titles  of  nobility  ;  but  there 
will  be  great  distinctions,  and  those  distinctions  will  soon  be  hereditary, 
and  we  shall  consequently  have  nobles,  but  no  titles.  For  my  own 
part  I  am  willing  to  take  my  chance  under  any  government  whatever ; 
but  it  is  hard  to  give  up  a  system  which  I  have  always  been  taught  to 
cherish,  and  to  confess  that  a  free  government  is  inconsistent  with  human 
nature. 

13th.  Captain  Wyer  '  was  in  the  office  this  afternoon,  a  couple  of 
hours  ;  very  zealous  for  the  new  Constitution.  Was  desirous  of  having 
a  town-meeting  to  instruct  their  representatives  upon  the  occasion ; 
quite  enthusiastic,  and  so  are  many  other  people.  This  afternoon  I 
went,  and  requested  the  favor  of  waiting  upon  Miss  Jones  to  the  ball 
next  Monday ;  she  will  go  if  her  health  will  permit.  Little  pass'd  the 
evening  with  me.     There  was  a  very  brilliant  northern  light. 

14th.  I  wrote  two  long  letters  this  day.  One  to  J.  Forbes,  and  the 
other  to  W.  Cranch.  Went  with  Putnam  in  the  afternoon  to  Mr. 
Tucker's  meeting ;  and  was  much  pleased  with  the  doctor's  preaching. 
Putnam  spent  an  hour  or  two  with  me  after  meeting. 

15th.  Rather  dissipated  the  whole  day.  Could  not  study  with 
proper  attention,  and  indeed  gave  the  matter  up  in  the  afternoon.  At 
about  seven  o'clock  we  met  at  the  dancing  hall,  and  from  that  time 
till  between  three  and  four  in  the  morning  we  were  continually  dancing. 
I  was  unacquainted  with  almost  all  the  company;  but  I  never  saw  a 
collection  of  ladies  where  there  was  comparatively  so  much  beauty. 
Two  or  three  gentlemen  got  rather  over  the  bay  ;  but  upon  the  whole 

1  Presumably  Captain  William  "W3'er,  a  sliipmaster,  —  one  of  the  six  founders 
of  the  Marine  Society  of  Newburyport  in  1772  to  promote  the  shipping  interests 
and  to  assist  needy  shipmasters ;  died  August  14,  1810,  aged  seventy-five.  Hurd, 
Hist,  of  Essex  County,  p.  1751;  Currier,  "Quid  Newbury,"  p.  710. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  47 

the  proceedings  were  as  regular  and  agreeable  as  might  be  expected. 
Little  lodg'd  with  me,  and  the  clock  struck  four  just  before  we  went 
to  bed. 

Ifith.  We  rose  at  about  nine  o'clock.  Dr.  Kilham  was  just  going 
to  take  his  seat  in  the  stage  for  Boston.  The  Dr.  represents  this 
town  in  the  Gen'l  Court  and  goes  to  Boston  now  to  attend  at  the  ses- 
sion, which  opens  to-morrow.  I  was  at  the  office  in  the  forenoon,  but 
could  not  attend  much  to  any  study.  I  took  a  walk  with  Townsend. 
Returu'd  again  to  the  office,  and,  just  as  I  had  got  ready  to  sit  down  to 
business,  in  came  W.  Cranch  and  Leonard  White  from  Haverhill,  who 
insisted  upon  it  that  I  should  go  there  with  them  this  afternoon  ;  and 
in  such  a  positive  manner  that  I  could  not  deny  them.  They  dined 
with  me  at  my  lodgings,  and,  at  about  four  in  the  afternoon,  we  all 
mounted  our  horses  for  Haverhill.  The  wind  was  very  high,  and 
scattered  the  dust  so  much  that  the  riding  was  very  disagreeable.  We 
drank  tea  at  Russell's  and  were  almost  half  an  hour  crossing  the  river, 
though  the  wind  had  considerably  abated.  At  about  seven  we  got  to 
Mr.  Shaw's  house.  Miss  N.  Quiucy  and  Miss  B.  Cranch '  came  in 
from  Mr.  Duncan's  soon  after.  Mr.  James  Duncan  ^  invited  W.  Cranch 
and  me  to  dine  with  him  to-morrow.  The  troop  of  horse  of  which  he 
is  1st  lieutenant  are  to  parade  in  the  morning,  and  he  makes  an  enter- 
tainment for  thera.     It  was  past  eleven  this  evening  when  we  retired. 

17th.  This  day  a  regiment  of  foot  and  a  troop  of  about  sixty  horse- 
men paraded  and  were  review'd  by  Gen'l  Titcomb.'     The  weather  was 

1  Elizabeth  Cranch,  cousin  of  J.  Q.  Adams,  daughter  of  Richard  and  Mary 
(Smith)  Cranch,  of  Braintree ;  baptized  November  27,  1763 ;  married,  February 
11,  1789,  Rev.  Jacob  Norton,  of  Weymouth  (see  infra,  p.  127) ;  died  January  25, 
1811.     Nash,  Hist.  Sketch  of  Weymouth,  p.  171. 

'^  James  Duncan,  Jr.,  brother-in-law  of  John  Thaxter,  First  Lieutenant  of  the 
Second  Troop  of  Horse  in  Essex  County;  in  business  with  his  fatlier  James 
Duncan ;  became  one  of  the  leading  merchants  of  Haverhill.  He  established  a 
store,  potash-works,  and  a  mill  for  grinding  flaxseed  at  Lebanon,  N.  H.,  and  it  is 
said  that  in  a  period  of  twenty-six  montlis  he  sent  thither  by  ox  teams  for  the 
country  trade  ninety  thousand  dollars  worth  of  goods.  He  died  in  1822,  when 
over  sixty  years  of  age ;  his  wife  was  Rebecca  White.  Chase,  Hist,  of  Haver- 
hill,  pp.  452,  623;  Hurd,  Hist,  of  Essex  County,  pp.  xlvi,  2003;  Fleet's  Alma- 
nack for  1788. 

3  Jonathan  Titcomb,  Major-General  of  the  militia  of  Essex  County;  in  1787 
a  man  of  about  sixty  ;  prominent  in  town  and  State  during  the  War  of  the  Revo- 
lution ;  selectman  1773-1775,  1777-1778,  1780,  1786,  1788;  moderator  of  town- 
meetings  1778,  1779,  1781,  1786,  1787;  Representative  in  the  General  Court 
1778-1788,  1786  ;  delegate  to  the  State  Constitutional  Convention  in  1780,  and 
to  the  Convention  that  ratified  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States;  his  mili- 
tary experience  had  been  gained  in  the  militia  and  as  colonel  of  a  regiment  in 
the  brief  campaigns  of  1777, 1778  under  General  Sullivan  in  Rhode  Island.  Hurd, 
Hist,  of  Essex  County,  pp.  1789-1741,  1753.  In  1789  General  Washington 
appointed  him  naval  officer  of  the  district  of  Newburyport ;  he  died  JMarch  10, 
1817. 


48  DIARY  OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

rather  disagreeable,  though  not  so  windy  as  it  was  yesterday.  One  of 
the  foot  companies  was  drest  in  the  rifle  uniform;  that  of  the  horse 
was  red  faced  with  green.  The  horses  iu  general  were  good,  but  the 
company  has  not  been  formed  long,  and  are  not  yet  perfect  in  their 
exercises.  We  dined  at  Mr.  Duncan's.  I  chatted  with  Mr.  Symraes 
upon  tlie  new  Constitution.  We  did  not  agree  upon  the  subject.  While 
we  were  talking  Mr.  Bartlett  came  in,  and  was  beginning  to  attack 
me.  I  told  him  I  wish'd  to  change  the  subject,  as  I  felt  utterly  unequal 
to  the  task  of  opposing  two  persons  of  whose  judgment  I  had  so  high 
an  opinion  as  INIr.  Symmes  and  Mr.  Bartlett.  Bartlett  laugh'd  and  said 
I  was  very  polite.  "  Adams,"  says  Symmes,  "  you  shall  go  home  with 
me,  and  take  abed  to-night";  —  and  I  found  that  France  is  not  the 
only  country  where  Torick's  secret  has  its  influence.'  We  walk'd  up 
the  hill  where  the  regiment  was  parading  in  the  afternoon  ;  but  the 
weather  was  so  cold  that  I  return'd  back  some  time  before  they  finish'd. 
The  General  was  drest  and  mounted  rather  shabbily  :  he  has  never  l)eea 
employed  in  military  life ;  and  nobody  knows  how  he  came  to  be  a 
major-general.  Pass'd  part  of  the  evening  at  Mr.  White's;  found 
Mr.  Allen  '^  and  Mr.  Tucker  at  Mr.  Shaw's  :  they  staid  till  about 
nine  o'clock,  and  then  return'd  to  Bradford. 

18lh.  We  dined  this  day  at  Mr.  Bartlett's.  Captain  Wier  was 
there  and  Miss  S.  J^PKinstry,^  who  is  upon  the  point  of  being  married 
to  Major  Starke,^  and  Miss  Barrell,  a  young  lady  from  Boston  whose 
countenance  indicates  misfortune.  She  had  a  lover,  who  forsook  her 
upon  discovering  that  she  had  not  a  fortune,  as  he  had  expected. 
Townsend  came  into  town  yesterday  with  Miss  P.  Greeuleaf,  and 
return'd  this  afternoon  to  Newbury.  The  young  ladies  drank  tea  at 
Judge  Sargeant's.  I  spent  the  evening  till  between  eight  and  nine 
o'clock  at  Mr.  AVhite's.     I  had  in  the  course  of  the  day,  and  have  had 

1  The  allusion  is  to  the  two  chapters  in  the  second  volume  of  Sterne's  "  Senti- 
mental Journey,"  entitled  "The  Kiddle"  and  "The  Riddle  Explained."  "I 
stepped  hastily  after  him :  it  was  the  very  man  whose  success  in  asking  charity 
of  the  woman  hefore  the  door  of  the  hotel  had  so  puzzled  me,  —  and  I  found 
at  once  his  secret,  or  at  least  the  basis  of  it : —  it  was  dattery." 

2  Rev.  Jonathan  Allen  (H.  C.  1774),  born  in  Braintree  February  16,  1748-9; 
ordained  at  Bradford  June  5,  1781 ;  died  March  G,  1827.  J.  D.  Kingsbury,  Memo- 
rial Hist,  of  Bradford,  pp.  106-117. 

3  Sarah  McKinstry,  daughter  of  Dr.  "William  McKinstry,  surgeon-general  of 
the  British  hospitals  at  Boston  in  1776,  formerly  of  Taunton;  married  Major 
Stark  in  1787;  died  September  11,  1839,  aged  seventy-two. 

*  Major  Caleb  Stark,  eldest  son  of  Major-General  John  Stark,  then  (1787) 
twenty-eight  years  of  age  and  a  merchant  in  Haverhill.  Running  away  from 
home  when  a  lad  of  fifteen,  he  joined  his  fatlier  in  the  army  on  tlie  eve  of  the 
Battle  of  Bunker  Hill,  and  served  throughout  the  War  of  Independence.  See 
C.  Stark,  Memoir  and  Official  Correspondence  of  General  John  Stark,  pp.  344- 
371;  Appleton,  Cycloptedia  of  American  Biography. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  49 

every  day  since  I  came  here,  a  great  deal  of  conversation  with  Mr. 
Shaw  concerning  S.  W.,  who  still  persists  in  declaring  himself  inno- 
cent, though  every  one  who  is  acquainted  with  the  circumstances  must 
be  as  fully  convinced  of  his  guilt,  as  if  he  had  seen  him  do  the  deed  him- 
self. Mr.  Shaw  was  much  afflicted.  He  had  great  expectations  from 
W.,  who  had  been  his  pupil,  and  whose  reputation  would  in  some 
measure  have  reflected  honour  upon  his  instructor ;  but  "  how  art 
thou  fallen,  Lucifer,  sou  of  the  morning  !  " 

19th.  W.  Cranch  and  the  two  young  ladies  set  off  this  morning  for 
Boston.  The  weather  is  much  milder  for  them  than  it  has  been  for 
several  days  past.  I  spent  the  forenoon  with  Mr.  Thaxter  at  his 
office.  He  is  to  be  published  next  Sunday.  Dined  at  Mr.  Shaw's. 
Just  after  dinner  Mrs.  Allen  '  came  in  from  Bradford,  and  inform'd  us 
of  Deacon  Smith's  death. '^  He  died  on  Tuesday  morning.  The  news 
came  by  Dr.  Williams,  who  lodg'd  at  Bradford  last  night.  Between 
three  and  four  I  set  out  to  return  home,  and  overtook  F.  Bradbury  ' 
and  Winslow  in  a  chaise  going  the  same  way.  At  about  half  past  five 
I  got  home  ;  and  went  and  pass'd  the  evening  with  Tovvnsend.  Amory 
is  quite  unwell ;  return'd  this  day  from  Portsmouth. 

20th.  I  was  more  attentive  at  the  office  than  I  expected  to  be  be- 
tween two  follies.  I  had  determined  before  I  went  to  Haverhill,  not 
to  go  so  far  as  Boston  till  the  spring;  but  I  have  now  altered  my 
resolutions,  and  shall  go  from  hence  next  Monday,  for  a  fortnight. 
This  is  not  the  way  to  acquire  the  science  of  the  law,  but  dissipation  is 
so  fashionable  here  that  it  is  necessary  to  enter  into  it  a  little  in  order 
not  to  appear  too  singular ;  and  as  Mr.  Parsons  will  probably  be  absent 
for  three  weeks  to  come,  I  know  not  that  I  can  take  a  more  eligible 
time  for  a  vacation. 

21st.  I  attended  Mr.  Carey  in  the  forenoon,  and  went  with  Putnam 
to  hear   Dr.  Tucker  *  in  the  afternoon.     He  is  a  very  good  preacher, 

1  Wife  of  Rev.  Jonathan  Allen,  of  Bradford. 

2  Isaac  Smith,  born  in  Charlestovvn  July,  1719  ;  married  Elizabeth  Storer 
October  9,  1746;  a  merchant  in  Boston;  died  October  16,  1787.  He  was  a 
brother  of  Rev.  Wm.  Smith,  of  Weymouth,  an  uncle  of  Mrs.  Abigail  Adams, 
father  of  Isaac  Smith   {supra,  p.  20)  and  of  William  Smitli  {supra,  p.  32,  jiote  3). 

3  Francis  Bradbury,  second  son  of  Hon.  Theophihis  Bradbury,  of  Newbury- 
port;  born  17G6;  died  1837;  married  October  6,  1803,  Hannah  Jones  Spooner, 
of  Dorchester.     W.  B.  Lapham,  Bradbury  Memorial,  pp.  89,  118,  119. 

*  Rev.  John  Tucker  (II.  C.  1741),  at  this  time  nearly  seventy  years  of  age, 
had  been  pastor  of  the  First  Parish  in  Newbury  forty-two  years.  He  received 
the  degree  of  S.  T.  D.  from  Harvard  College  a  few  months  before.  Born  in 
Amesbury  ;  settled  at  Newbury  in  November,  1745  ;  died  March  22, 1792.  On  his 
installation  some  of  the  parish,  thinking  him  inclined  to  Arminianism,  withdrew 
and  formed  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  in  Newburyport.  He  engaged  in  many 
sharp  doctrinal  controversies  with  the  neighboring  ministers.  See  Appleton's 
American  Biography  foraUst  of  his  sermons  in  print;  J.  J.  Currier,  Hist,  of  New- 
bury, pp.  339-844;  etc. 

7 


50  DIARY  OP  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

but  the  generality  of  his  hearers  look  as  if  they  were  form'd  of  the 
coarsest  clay.  A  number  of  female  figures  in  particular  seem  to  charge 
nature  with  having  made  gross  mistakes.  I  passed  the  evening  till 
almost  nine  o'clock  with  Putnam.  Townsend  took  me  from  there  and 
carried  me  volens  nolens  to  sup  with  him.  I  intended  to  have  written 
a  great  deal  this  day,  but  all  my  schemes  vanished  with  the  fleeting 
hours,  and  I  must  now  refer  this  matter  till  I  return  from  my  intended 
journey. 

22d.  The  weather  yesterday  did  not  look  promising,  but  is  this  day 
very  clear,  and  for  the  season  uncommonly  warm.  At  about  half  past 
nine  I  mounted  my  horse,  and  Townsend  said  he  would  take  an  airing 
and  ride  a  few  miles  with  me.  The  pleasantness  of  the  weather  led  him 
on  till  he  finally  agreed  to  go  as  far  as  Haverhill,  intending  to  return 
in  the  afternoon.  We  rode  part  of  the  way  with  Sohier,  the  collegian, 
who  was  on  his  way  to  Groton  ;  and  we  got  to  Haverhill  just  before 
twelve  o'clock.  I  found  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Shaw  had  set  out  this  morning 
for  Hingham.  At  twelve  we  went  to  Mr.  Thaxter's  lodgings,  and 
found  fifty  or  sixty  people  heartily  at  work,  in  which  we  very  readily 
joined  them.  At  about  two,  there  were  eighteen  or  twenty  left  who 
sat  down  to  a  table  covered  with  "  big  bellied  "  bottles.  For  two  hours 
or  more  Bacchus  and  Momus  joined  hands  to  increase  the  festivity  of 
the  company ;  but  the  former  of  these  deities  then  of  a  sudden  took  a 
fancy  to  divert  himself,  and  fell  to  tripping  up  their  heels.  Momus 
laugh'd  on,  and  kept  singing  till  he  finally  grew  hoarse  and  drowsy ; 
and  Morpheus,  to  close  the  scene,  sprinkled  a  few  poppies  over  their 
heads,  and  set  them  to  snoring  in  concert.  This  is,  I  believe,  the  first 
time  that  I  have  dived  any  depth  into  the  pagan  mythology  since  I 
undertook  the  direction  of  tliese  very  interesting  memoirs.  I  have 
always  had  the  precept  of  Horace  in  my  mind, 

Nee  Deus  intersit,  nisi  dignus  vindice  nodus, ^ 

and  I  trust  the  gentle  reader  will  not  think  I  have  in  this  instance 
violated  that  rule.  But  to  return  to  plain  insipid  narration,  by  five 
o'clock  they  were  all  under  the  table,  except  those  who  had  been  pecu- 
liarly cautious  and  two  or  three  stout  topers.  I  had  been  very  mod- 
erate, yet  felt  it  was  necessary  to  walk  and  take  the  air.  I  rambled 
with  Leonard  White,  over  the  fields,  and  through  the  streets  till  near 
seven  o'clock.  Then  went  home  with  him.  and,  after  passing  a  couple 
of  hours  in  chat,  retired  quite  early  to  bed. 

23d.  Rose  at  about  eight  this  morning,  and  felt  no  inconveniency 
from  the  scene  of  yesterday.  Townsend,  who  got  so  much  engaged  as 
to  give  up  all  thoughts  of  returning  last  night  to  Newbury-Port,  break- 
fasted with  us  this  morning;  and  then  mounted  his  horse.     It  was  a 

1  De  Arte  Poetica,  line  191. 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  51 

little  after  nine  when  I  started  from  the  opposite  shore  of  the  river, 
and  it  was  about  twelve  when  I  got  to  the  tavern  in  Wilmington.  Mr. 
Thaxter,  and  Miss  Duncan,  and  her  brother  James,  a  Mr.  Howe,  and 
two  or  three  other  ladies  dined  at  Wilmington.  The  landlord  is 
opposed  to  the  proposed  Constitution.  I  stopped  about  a  quarter  of 
an  hour  at  Medt'ord  to  see  my  friend  Freeman,  and  delivered  him  a 
couple  of  letters.  I  expected  to  have  seen  him  at  the  ordination 
to-morrow ;  but  his  school  retains  him  at  Medford.  We  got  into 
Boston  just  before  sunset.  We  stopp'd  an  hour  there  to  get  dress'd, 
and  take  a  dish  of  coffee.  It  was  quite  dark  before  we  got  out  of 
town  ;  and  we  arrived  at  Braiutree  between  eiglit  and  nine.  We 
found  that  the  young  ladies  and  all  the  company  that  was  disposed  to 
attend  the  ordination  had  gone  to  Hingham  this  afternoon.  I  was 
very  much  fatigued.  I  once  before  rode  this  journey  in  a  day  ;  (v : 
p.  25)  and  was  still  more  fatigued  ;  but  that  was  in  the  middle  of 
summer,  when  the  weather  was  very  warm,  which  made  it  more 
tedious  to  ride  on  horseback.  Kirkland  ^  and  my  brother  Tom  were 
both  here,  and  could  not  go  on  to  Hingham  for  want  of  horses.  It 
was  almost  eleven  before  we  retired. 

24th.  At  about  ten  this  morning  I  set  off  for  Hingham.  Mr. 
Thaxter  and  Miss  Duncan  went  somewhat  earlier.  I  got  there  between 
eleven  and  twelve,  and  went  immediately  to  the  meeting  house. ^  It 
was  very  much  crowded,  and  I  found  great  difficulty  to  get  in.  I 
finally  obtained  however  a  very  good  place.  They  began  by  singing 
a  good  anthem  extremely  well.  The  first  prayer  was  made  by  Mr. 
[blanlc^.  Mr.  Hilliard  ^  then  preach'd  a  sermon  from  II.  Corinthians, 
I.  24:  —  Not  that  we  have  dominion  over  your  faith,  but  are  helpers 
of  your  joy.  He  delivered  his  sentiments  very  freely,  though  many 
of  them  were  in  opposition  to  the  prevailing  customs.  It  was  the  best 
sermon  I  ever  heard  him  preach,  and  upon  this  occasion  it  was  natural 
that   he  should  exert   himself.     Mr.^  [blank']    gave  the  charge;  Dr. 

1  John  Thornton  Kirkland,  President  of  Harvard  University,  1810-1828;  then 
(1787)  a  Junior  in  college.  See  J.  Q.  Adams,  Memoirs,  vol.  vii.  pp.  134,  135,  for 
a  reference  to  the  sermons  preached  by  Dr.  Kirkland  at  Quincy  in  memory  of 
John  Adams  (and  of  Abigail  Adams);  see  also  American  Academy  Memoirs, 
n.  s.  V.  i.  (1833),  pp.  iii-xxxi,  for  a  Discourse  in  commemoration  of  J.  Adams 
and  T.  Jefferson,  October  30,  1826. 

2  The  celebrated  " Old  Ship  "  meetinghouse  was  already,  in  1788,  over  a  hun- 
dred years  old. 

^  Rev.  Henry  Ware  had  studied  theolog}'  under  Rev.  Timothy  Hilliard,  of 
Cambridge.     Sermon  printed  in  pamphlet  form,  Salem,  1788;  Cambridge,  1828. 

^  The  charge  was  given  by  the  Rev.  John  Brown,  of  Cohasset  (H.  C.  1741), 
son  of  Rev.  John  Brown,  of  Haverhill,  born  March  9,  1723;  pastor  at  Cohasset 
Se[)tember  2,  1747,  till  his  death,  October  22.  1791.  See  "A  Sermon  preached 
October  24  1787  at  the  Ordination  of  the  Rev.  Henry  Ware  ...  by  Timothy 
Hilliard,  A.M.  .  .  ."  (Salem,  1788),  p.  26,  for  the  charge;  pp.  27,  28  for  the  right 
hand  of  fellowship.    Cohasset  was  the  Second  Parish  in  Hingham  until  1770. 


62  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

Hitchcock  *  made  the  ordaining  prayer ;  Mr.  Shute  ^  gave  the  right 
hand  of  fellowship,  and  Mr.  Ilaveu^  made  the  last  prayer;  the  cere- 
monies were  then  concluded  by  another  anthem  as  well  perform'd  as 
the  first.  From  thence  the  company  retired.  I  went  to  pay  my 
compliments  to  Mr.  Ware,  my  old  chum  ;^  and  to  tell  him  how  happy 
I  am  to  see  him  so  well  settled  already.  I  intended  to  dine  there,  but 
was  called  away  with  Mr.  Gannett  by  Mr.  Caleb  Thaxter,^  where  we 
went  and  dined.  There  were  between  thirty  and  forty  persons  at  table, 
but  chiefly  young  gentlemen.  After  dinner  we  had  two  or  three  songs, 
and  then  walk'd.  We  went  to  Col'  Rice's,®  where  we  found  a  similar 
company,  smoking  and  singing.  We  rambled  about  till  almost  seven 
o'clock ;  and  I  then  went  to  Mrs.  Derby's  hall,  where,  it  was  said, 
there  was  to  be  a  dance.  We  found  here  a  scene  of  confusion  similar 
to  that  which  we  had  last  spring  at  Sandwich.  However,  by  a  manceuvre 
which  pack'd  off  about  one  half  of  the  company,  our  numbers  were  so 
much  reduced  that  we  were  able  to  maintaiu  a  degree  of  order  and 
regularity.  I  was  so  lucky  as  to  draw  Miss  S.  Smith  of  Sandwich  for 
a  partner,  and  danced  with  her  a  great  part  of  the  evening.     It  was 

Hist,  of  Hingham,  vol.  i.  part  ii.  pp.  89,40;  Hard,  Hist,  of  Norfolk  County,  p. 
233;  Jacob  Flint,  Two  Discourses,  containing  tlie  History  of  tlie  Church  and 
Society  in  Cohasset,  delivered  December  16,  1821,  etc. 

1  Rev.  Gad  Hitchcnck  (H.  C.  1743),  pastor  of  the  Second  Parish  in  Pembroke, 
now  Hanson,  1748-1803.  Born  February  12,  1718-19,  in  Springfield  ;  a  chaplain 
occasionally  during  t!ie  War  of  the  Revolution  ;  member  of  the  State  Constitu- 
tional Convention  of  1780;  incapacitated  by  paralysis  July,  1799;  died  August, 
1803;  he  is  remembered  as  a  man  of  jovial  disposition,  as  well  as  a  vigorous 
preacher.  See  his  Election  Sermon,  1774.  See  also  Sprague,  Annals  of  the 
American  Pulpit,  vol.  viii.  pp.  29-31. 

2  Rev.  Daniel  Shute  (H.  C.  1743),  pastor  of  the  Second  Church  in  Hingham 
1746-1802.  Born  July  19,  1722,  iu  Maiden;  in  1758  chaplain  of  a  regiment  for 
Canada;  1780  delegate  to  the  State  Constitutional  Convention;  1788  delegate 
with  General  Benjamin  Lincoln  to  the  Convention  which  ratified  the  Constitution 
of  the  United  States;  a  colleague  settled  in  1799;  died  August  30,  1802.  See 
speech  in  Convention  against  requiring  a  religious  test  as  a  qualification  for  office. 
Elliot,  Debates,  vol.  ii.  pp.  118, 119;  Hist,  of  Hingham,  vol.  i.  part  ii.  pp.  27,41. 

3  Rev.  Jason  Haven  ( Ii.  C.  1754),  pastor  at  Dedliam  1756-1803.  Born  March  2, 
1732-3  in  Framingham;  died  May  17,  1803;  member  of  State  Constitutional  Con- 
vention of  1780;  Sprague,  Annals  of  American  Pulpit,  vol.  i.  pp.  557-559. 

4  H.  Adams,  Historical  Essays,  p.  86  ("Harvard  College,  1786-1787")- 

5  Caleb  Thaxter,  a  bachelor  of  thirty-six,  cousin  of  J.  Q.  Adams's  tutor  and 
kinsman,  John  Thaxter.  Born  in  Hingham  April  18,  1751 ;  he  died  November 
12,  1828,  unmarried.     Hist,  of  Hingham,  vol.  i.  part  i.  pp.  269,  270;  vol.  iii.  p.  233. 

6  Colonel  Nathan  Rice  (II.  C.  1773),  in  1787  about  thirty-three  years  of  age, 
son  of  Rev.  Nathan  Rice,  of  Sturbridge;  a  law  student  with  John  Adams  ;  an  aide 
to  General  Lincoln  in  the  War  of  the  Revolution  ;  engaged  in  trade  1783-1798; 
represented  Hingham  in  the  General  Court  1801-1805 ;  removed  to  Burlington, 
Yt.,  in  1811 ;  died  April,  1834.  Hist,  of  Hingham,  vol.  iii.  p.  129;  G.  Davis,  Hist. 
Sketch  of  Sturbridge  and  Southbridge,  pp.  02-64;  Works  of  John  Adams,  vol.  ix. 
pp.  408,  411. 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  53 

between  two  and  three  in  the  morning  before  we  broke  up.  I  then 
went  to  Col'  Thaxter's,'  supp'd,  and,  at  about  half  after  three,  went  to 
bed  with  Charles. 

25th.  The  town  is  not  so  much  crowded  this  day,  as  it  was  yesterday. 
That  dass  of  people  which  is  called  by  some  persons  the  rabble,  (by 
which  word  is  meant  people  who  have  neither  a  fortune  nor  an  educa- 
tion at  our  university,  alias  a  liberal  education)  went  off  chiefly  last 
night ;  and  there  now  remains  nothing  but  the.  genteel  company,  or  other- 
wise people  who  have  no  business  to  call  them  from  scenes  of  dissipation. 
I  walk'd  in  the  morning  with  Mr.  Ware  and  Col'  Rice  down  to  the 
landing  place,  where  I  found  a  number  of  people  employ'd  in  preparing 
fish.  There  is  some  little  business  of  this  kind  done  here.  After  return- 
ing into  town  I  saunter'd  about  till  dinner  time.     Foster,^  Learned,^ 

^  Colonel  John  Thaxter  (H.  C.  1741),  farmer  and  colonel  of  a  regiment,  town 
treasurer  for  many  years ;  born  in  Ilingham  November  22,  1721 ;  married,  Feb- 
ruary 24,  1743-4,  Anna  Quincy,  daughter  of  Colonel  John  Quincy,  great-grand- 
fatlier  of  J.  Q.  Adams ;  died  October  6,  1802.  John  Thaxter,  J.  Q.  Adams's 
tutor,  was  his  son.     Hist,  of  Hingham,  vol.  iii.  p.  232. 

2  "  Bossenger  Foster  of  Boston  was  nineteen  the  9'^''  of  last  December.  Of  him  I 
can  say  but  little ;  he  is  a  very  good  speaker,  and  has  a  good  natural  genius,  but 
has  not  been  very  assiduous  in  improving  the  talents  entrusted  to  him  by  nature. 
Plis  conversation  and  manners  are  often  puerile,  and  very  seldom  show  him  to 
great  advantage.  His  chief  excellency  lies  in  declaiming  an  elegant  piece  of 
composition,  and  in  playing  on  tiie  violin ;  in  these  particulars  there  is  not,  per- 
haps, his  superior  in  College.  He  is  remarked  by  some,  as  being  of  a  narrow  dis- 
position ;  but  this  stigma  is  cast  by  certain  characters  upon  every  person  who 
keeps  within  the  bounds  of  common  frugality;  and,  if  tliis  were  Foster's  only 
fault,  I  should  set  him  down  as  an  excellent  character."  J.  Q.  Adams,  March  29, 
1787.  Born  December  9,  1767;  a  classmate  of  J.  Q.  Adams;  entered  the  law 
office  of  Theophilus  Parsons  in  1788;  lived  later  in  Cambridge  ;  died  January  17, 
1816,  unmarried.  His  father,  Bossenger  Foster,  moved  to  Cambridge  and  lived 
in  the  "  Batchelder  house"  opposite  St.  John's  Church.  Andrew  Craigie  was  his 
maternal  uncle.     See  F.  C.  Pierce,  Foster  Genealogy  (1899),  pp.  93G,  937. 

3  "Ebenezer  Learned  of  Medford,  Middlesex  Co.,  will  be  twenty-five  the  30"» 
of  next  Oct''.  Without  possessing  a  superior  genius,  b)^  mere  dint  of  application  he 
has  become  a  respectable  scholar;  his  mind  is  perhaps  more  attentive  to  matters 
of  small  moment  than  is  necessary.  He  has  candour  enough  to  confess  himself 
envious,  but  says  he  cannot  help  it.  He  appears  to  be  sensible  that  his  abilities 
are  not  of  the  first  rate,  yet  he  acknowledges  that  his  soul  is  tortured  with  am- 
bition. I  would  not  give  a  fig  for  life,  said  he,  one  day  to  me,  if  I  could  but  plant 
immortality  upon  Ebenezer  Learned.  There  is  not  at  present  any  prospect  that 
his  name  will  obtain  immortality ;  but  he  intends  to  be  a  preacher,  when  he  may 
comfort  himself  with  the  idea  that  his  soul  must  be  immortal.  He  was,  as  he  says 
himself,  too  old  when  he  entered  the  University.  From  fourteen  to  eighteen  I 
should  suppose  the  best  age  for  entering.  The  studies  which  are  i)ursued  here  are 
just  calculated  for  the  tender  minds  of  youth;  but  the  degree  of  liberty  that  is 
enioy'd  renders  it  dangerous  to  young  persons,  before  they  have  acquired  a  certain 
degree  of  judgment."  J.  Q.  Adams,  diary,  May  7,  1787.  Learned  (H.  C.  1787), 
chose  the  medical  profession ;  studied  under  Dr.  Holyoke,  of  Salem,  and  settled 
in  Hopkinton,  N.  H.,  about  1790,  being  the  first  educated  physician  in  the  town. 


54  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

and  Vose  with  his  sisters  ^  went  away  before  dinner.  Dined  at  Col^ 
Rice's.  The  company  was  not  large ;  the  character  that  I  remarked 
the  most  was  a  Captain  Clap,  who  is  all  soldier.  He  appears  to  delight 
in  whatever  is  military;  Col'  Rice's  son,  a  lad  of  seven  years  old, 
committed  some  little  impropriety ;  "  you  rogue,"  says  Clap,  "  nothing 
but  your  age  can  excuse  and  protect  you."  Who  but  a  genuine  son  of 
Mars  would  have  thought  of  correcting,  in  that  manner,  a  boy  of  seven 
years?  It  was  proposed  that  we  should  have  another  dance  this  night, 
and  Blake  and  Perkins,  a  couple  of  young  fellows,  both  strangers  in 
town,  undertook  to  be  managers.  We  drank  tea,  a  number  of  us,  at 
Mr.  Caleb  Tbaxter's,  and,  at  about  seven,  went  again  to  Mrs.  Derby's 
hall,  where  a  partition  between  two  chambers  had  been  taken  down, 
which  made  it  much  more  convenient  than  it  was  the  night  before. 
There  were  about  thirty  gentlemen  and  forty  ladies ;  about  twenty 
couple  could  stand  up  at  once,  and  the  rest  amused  themselves  either 
with  conversation,  or  with  playing  at  cards.  Between  two  and  three 
we  broke  up,  and  I  retired  with  our  young  ladies.  We  sat  about  half 
an  hour  at  Col'l  Thaxter's,  and  I  then  went  to  bed.  But  a  number  of 
the  lads,  after  conducting  their  ladies  home,  retained  the  music,  aud 
went  a  serenading  all  over  the  town  till  day-light. 

26th.  We  went  and  escorted  a  number  of  ladies  to  the  packet;"  and 
by  eleven  o'clock  almost  all  the  company  was  gone,  and  the  town  look'd 
as  solitary  as  a  deserted  village.  1  took  a  walk  with  Mr.  Q.  Thaxter  ^ 
and  Mr.  Andrews  down  to  Gen'  Lincoln's  Mills.*  It  was  half  past 
twelve  before  I  got  back  to  Mr.  Thaxter's.  Of  all  the  company  that 
bad  been  there  Charles  and  I  only  remained  at  dinner.  At  about  two 
we  mounted,  and  arrived  at  Mr.  Cranch's  in  Braintree  at  about  half 

He  was  the  first  President  of  the  Merrimack  County  Agricultural  Society, 
founder  of  the  Hopkinton  Academy  in  1827,  Vice-President  of  the  State  Medical 
Society,  first  Delegate  of  the  New  Hampshire  Medical  Society  to  Dartmouth; 
died  October  6,  1831. 

^  Solomon  Vose  (H.  C.  1787),  classmate  of  J.  Q.  Adams,  Init  not  accounted 
one  of  his  friends  ;  son  of  General  Josepli  Vose  ;  born  in  Milton  February  22,  1768 ; 
went  to  Charleston,  S.  C,  as  a  trader;  studied  law  under  Levi  Lincoln,  senior,  at 
Worcester;  practised  law  at  Northfield,  Mass.;  was  the  first  postmaster  there, 
and  a  Representative  to  the  General  Court;  removed  to  Augusta,  Me.,  in  180-5; 
died  of  apoplexy  in  1809.  In  1787  he  had  five  sisters  between  the  ages  of 
eighteen  and  twenty-five  —  all  apparently  as  yet  unmarried  —  Sarah,  Margaret, 
Dolly  and  Nancy  (twins),  and  Naomi.  Milton  Records,  Births,  Marriages,  and 
Deaths,  1662-1848,  pp.  72,  etc. ;  A.  K.  Teele,  Hist,  of  ]\Iilton,  p.  511 ;  J.  W.  North, 
Hist,  of  Augusta,  Me.,  pp.  386,  387,  948. 

-  The  communication  between  Hingham  and  Boston  was  then  by  water,  across 
Boston  bay. 

'^  Quincy  Thaxter,  brother  of  John  Thaxter  (former  tutor  of  J.  Q.  Adams); 
born  March  28,  1702;  married  August  27,  1786,  Elizabeth  Gushing;  died  Octo- 
ber 9,  1837  ;  a  farmer.     Hist,  of  Hingham,  vol.  iii.  p.  235. 

*  A  flour  and  grain  mill  on  Weir  River,  belonging  to  General  Benjamin 
Lincoln. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  55 

after  three.  The  young  ladies  had  got  home  before  dinner,  and  were 
much  fatigued.  I  was  not  so  much  so  as  I  expected  to  be,  from  keep- 
in"-  so  constantly  on  the  go  since  the  beginning  of  the  week.  In  the 
beginning  of  the  evening  Judge  Sargeant  came  in  ;  he  came  from 
Taunton  where  the  Supreme  Court  have  been  sitting  this  week,  and 
completed  their  business  last  evening. 

27th.  Judge  Sargeant,  went  away  this  forenoon  proceeding  on  his 
way  to  Cambridge.  Tom  went  to  Lincoln.  In  the  afternoon,  I  went 
with  Charles  and  Kirkland  to  see  my  uncle  Quincy.^  Mr.  Wibird  was 
here  in  the  evening. 

28th.  I  attended  upon  Mr.  "Wibird  in  the  forenoon  ;  and  pass'd  the 
afternoon  down  at  my  father's  library.^  W.  Cranch  came  from  Boston 
last  evening,  and  returned  there  to-night  after  meeting.  I  was  very 
much  entertained  in  reading  some  journals  of  my  father's,  from  1769  to 
1776.3 

29th.  At  about  10  o'clock  Mr.  Thaxter  came  in  from  Ilingham  on 
his  way  to  Boston.  He  stay'd  but  a  few  minutes,  and  I  set  off  with  him. 
We  got  into  town  before  one.  I  dined  with  Miss  B.  Smith,^  who  still 
lives  in  the  house  that  was  her  father's.  Mrs.  Cranch  was  there,  and 
went  for  Braintree  soon  after  dinner.  I  went  and  spent  the  evening 
with  Dr.  Kilham  at  his  lodgings.  He  has  made  himself  rather  unpopu- 
lar, by  opposing  the  submission  of  the  Federal  Constitution  to  a  State 
Convention ;  and  I  think  he  is  perfectly  right  in  preferring  his  inde- 
pendency to  his  popularity. 

30th.  Sauntered  about  town  the  chief  part  of  the  day.  Attended  in 
the  gallery  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  but  there  was  no  matter  of 
any  great  importance  before  them.  Dined  at  Deacoa  Storer's  ^  with 
Mr.  Thaxter,  who  is  very  busy  in  making  preparations  for  his  marriage. 

1  Norton  Quincy  (H.  C.  1736),  son  of  Colonel  John  Quincy  ;  uncle  of  Mrs.  Abi- 
gail Adams;  was  in  close  harmony  with  John  Adams  at  the  outbreak  of  the 
Revohitionary  troubles,  presided  over  the  Braintree  Stamp  Act  meeting  which 
adopted  Jolin  Adams's  resolutions  ;  served  with  him  as  selectman  in  1766 ;  headed 
the  committee  of  correspondence  appointed  by  the  town  in  1774,  etc.;  died  1801. 
He  lived  on  Mount  VVolIaston.  C.  F.  Adams,  Three  Episodes  of  Massachusetts 
History,  pp.  839,  846,  850.  868. 

2  In  the  house  still  standing,  at  Penn's  Hill,  Quincy. 

3  Subsequently  published.  See  Life  and  Works  of  John  Adams,  vol.  ii.  pp. 
216-433. 

*  Elizabeth  (Betsey)  Smith,  daughter  of  Deacon  Isaac  Smith,  who  died  Octo- 
ber 16,  1787 ;  born  January  30,  1770. 

5  EbenezerStorer,  merchant  on  Sudbury  Street;  treasurer  of  Harvard  College 
1777-1807  ;  for  a  time  a  deacon  of  the  Brattle  Square  Church,  and  the  title 
clung  to  him.  Baptized  February  1,  1730,  he  died  January  6,  1807,  aged 
seventy-seven.  Apparently  he  was  the  uncle  of  William  Smith,  who  married 
Hannah  Carter,  of  Newburyport.  Records  of  the  Church  in  Brattle  Square 
(1902),  pp.  39,  117,  152,  279,  etc.;  Fleet's  Almanack  for  1787;  Boston  Directory 
for  1789. 


56  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

I  drank  tea  at  Mr.  Dawes's,  and  pass'd  the  evening  at  Mr.  Foster's 
with  Dr.  Tufts.     Lodg'd  at  Mr.  W.  Smith's. 

31st.  Saw  Charles  in  Boston,  on  his  way  to  Cambridge,  as  the  vaca- 
tion closes  this  day.  At  about  noon  I  set  out  for  Cambridge  myself. 
The  Supreme  Court  sits  there  this  week.  I  dined  and  lodg'd  at  Judge 
Dana's.  I  attended  the  Court  in  the  afternoon,  but  no  case  came  on 
of  any  consequence.  Saw  Stedman  there.  He  has  not  yet  opened  an 
office,  but  proposes  to  do  so  very  soon.  The  House  of  Representatives 
this  day  rejected  a  report  of  a  Committee  for  erecting  a  bridge  over 
Beverly  ferry.^  In  the  evening  I  called  at  Mr.  Wigglesworth's  and 
passed  an  hour  :  Peggy  is  as  sociable  and  agreeable  as  ever. 
Here  endeth  the  second  Volume. 
1787. 

Thursday,  November  1st  1787. 
I  attended  in  the  morning  and  in  the  afternoon  at  the  setting  of  the 
Supreme  Court.  Judge  Dana  took  his  seat  for  the  first  time  since  his 
illness,  from  which  he  has  not  yet,  and  I  fear  never  will  entirely  re- 
cover, I  dined  at  his  house,  and  pass'd  the  evening  with  my  old 
classmate  Sam'  Williams.'*  The  cases  before  the  Court  were  not  very 
interesting,  except  one  which  was  so  intricate  that  I  could  not  entirely 
comprehend  it.  Sullivan  and  Lowell  spent  their  lungs  for  three  or 
four  hours  upon  the  cause,  and  it  was  eight  in  the  evening  before  it 
was  given  to  the  jury.  Sullivan  asserted  that  in  the  Courts  in  this 
country  it  was  customary  to  take  parol  evidence,  in  preference  to 
matter  of  record.  This  bare-faced  falshood  was  noticed  by  all  the 
Court.  Sumner^  shook  his  head.  "You  are  totally  mistaken,  INIr. 
Sullivan,"  said  Cushing.*  "  They  have  done  so,"  said  Sullivan. 
"Then,"  said  Sewall,^  **  1  hope  they  will  never  do  so  again."     This  is 

1  In  1788  the  Essex  Bridge  was  built  over  Beverly  ferry,  connecting  Salem 
with  Beverly ;  the  first  stroke  struck  May  1 ;  forinally  opened  for  traffic  Sep- 
tember 24.  This,  with  the  Charles  River  and  Maiden  bridges,  was  the  pride  of 
Massachusetts  ;  "  for  magnitude,"  the  "  Centinel "  asserted,  "  not  equalled  by  any- 
thing of  the  kind  in  America."  Massachusetts  Centinel,  September  10  and  24, 
1788. 

2  Samuel  Williams,  son  of  Rev.  Samuel  Williams,  Hollis  Professor  of  Mathe- 
matics at  Harvard  1780-1788;  born  October  6,  1770;  died  March  1,  180S. 

3  Increase  Sumner  (H.  C.  1767),  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  1782-1797; 
Governor  of  Massachusetts  1797-1799 ;  law  student  under  Samuel  Adams. 

*  William  Cushing,  Cliief  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court;  appointed  a  Justice 
before  the  War  of  Independence,  succeeding  his  father  and  his  grandfather;  1789 
resigned  to  accept  appointment  to  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States.  John 
Adams  was  nominated  to  the  position  of  Chief  Justice,  but  never  qualified.  See 
letter  from  John  Adams  to  William  Cushing,  June  9,  177G.  John  Adams, 
Works,  vol.  ix.  pp.  390-392;  J.  Q.  Adams,  Memoirs,  vol.  vii.  p.  136. 

5  David  Sewall  (H.  C.  1755),  of  York,  Maine;  classmate  of  John  Adams; 
Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Massachusetts  1777-1789;  United  States  Judge 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  57 

not  an  uncommon  practice  of  Sullivan's ;  and  when  the  whole  Court 
are  thus  loudly  against  him  he  does  not  appear  in  the  least  abashed, 
but  appears  to  display  a  countenance  which  never  knew  a  blush.  I 
lodg'd  at  Packard's  chamber. 

2d.  I  breakfasted  this  morning  with  Stedman.  A  number  of  the 
lawyers  were  there  ;  rather  nettled  at  a  bill  now  before  the  Senate, 
for  the  better  regulating  the  fees,  &c.,  of  attorneys  and  practitioners. 
The  Committee  by  whom  it  was  drawn  up  and  presented,  was  com- 
posed of  those  persons  who  for  these  two  years  past  have  been  the 
most  violent  of  the  community,  in  their  antipathy  to  lawyers  —  blessed 
times !  ^     I  was  so  much  engag'd  this  forenoon  in  other  matters  that 

of  the  District  of  Maine  1789-1818.  See  John  Adams,  Works,  vol.  ii.  pp.  241- 
244,  vol.  ix.  pp.  627-C29,  vol.  x.  p.  399;  Proceedings  Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  vol.  i. 
pp.  389,  390. 

^  This  entry  has  an  historical  significance.  In  1788  the  legal  calling  was,  not 
without  cause,  looked  upon  in  Massacliusetts  with  much  popular  disfavor.  Tlie 
country  was  very  poor,  the  people  in  debt,  and  the  currency  disordered.  Paper 
money  was  wholly  discredited,  and  there  was  little  silver  in  circulation.  "  The 
sufferings  of  the  debtors  in  Massachusetts,  especially  in  its  central  and  western 
counties  [were]  embittered  by  the  devices  of  attorneys  to  increase  tiieir  own 
emoluments,  and  aggrieved  by  the  barbarous  laws  of  that  day  which  doomed 
the  debtor,  however  innocent,  to  imprisonment  at  the  caprice  of  his  creditor." 
Bancroft,  History  of  the  Formation  of  the  Constitution,  vol.  i.  p.  274.  See  also 
paper  of  John  Noble  in  Proceedings  of  the  American  Antiquarian  Society  for 
October,  1902.  Tliis  condition  of  affairs  had  led  to  the  uprising  in  the  autumn 
of  1786.  So  great  was  the  popular  discontent  at  the  time,  and  so  odious  had 
lawyers  become,  that  at  a  town  meeting  held  at  Braintree,  where  J.  Q.  Adams 
lived,  on  the  25th  of  September,  1786,  its  representative  to  the  General  Court 
was  instructed  as  follows  :  — 

"  6thly.  We  humbly  request  that  there  may  be  such  Laws  compiled  as  may 
crush  or  at  least  put  a  proper  check  or  restraint  on  that  order  of  Gentlemen 
denominated  Lawyers  the  completion  of  whose  modern  conduct  appears  to  us 
to  tend  rather  to  the  destruction  than  the  preservation  of  this  Commonwealth." 

"  8tlily.  That  Real  and  Personal  Estate  be  a  tender  for  all  debts  when  call'd 
for,  provided  the  Interest  be  punctually  paid." 

Some  six  months  later,  and  under  these  circumstances,  Mr.  Adams,  then  a 
member  of  the  Senior  class  at  Harvard,  was  assigned,  as  a  part  at  the  spring 
exhibition,  "  a  conference  in  English,  upon  the  comparative  utility  of  Law,  Physic, 
and  Divinity."  He  was  to  advocate  Law ;  his  classmates  Moses  Little  and 
Nathaniel  Freeman  spoke  for  Pliysics  and  Divinity.  The  following  entries  in 
Mr.  Adams's  diary  relate  to  the  subject :  — 

"ilarch  14th.  Was  employ'd  almost  all  day  in  thinking  upon  the  subject  of 
my  conference ;  wrote  a  few  lines,  with  much  difficulty.  Did  not  like  the  sub- 
ject.    Wished  the  conference  to  the  devil. 

"  March  loth.  All  day,  engaged  again  in  writing  my  part  of  the  conference; 
I  do  not  know  that  I  ever  found  so  much  difficulty  to  write  upon  any  subject. 
Little  and  Freeman  are  not  much  better  pleased.  In  the  night,  however,  between 
twelve  and  two  o'clock,  I  began  to  have  something  like  a  flow  of  ideas ;  I  wrote 
more  than  I  had  done  in  two  whole  days." 

The  opening  paragraph  of  his  conference  indicates  the  causes  of  his  "  diffi- 
culty," and  also  the  popular  feeling  toward  lawyers:  — 

8 


58  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

I  could  not  attend  at  the  Court.  I  called  at  Mr.  Dana's  and  at  Mr. 
Wigglesworth's/  and  took  their  letters  for  Newbury-Port.  Dined  at 
M"  Forbes's.     Jack,^  and  his  brother  James/  arrived  from  Boston  just 

"  At  a  time  when  the  profession  of  the  Law,  labours  under  the  heavy  weight 
of  popular  iiulignation  ;  wlien  it  is  upbraided  as  the  original  cause  of  all  the  evils 
with  which  the  Commonwealth  is  distressed;  when  the  legislature  have  been 
publicly  exhorted  by  a  popular  writer  to  abolish  it  entirely,  and  when  the  mere 
title  of  lawyer  is  sufBcient  to  deprive  a  man  of  the  public  confidence,  it  should 
eeem  this  profession  would  afford  but  a  poor  subject  for  panegyric  :  but  its  real 
utility  is  not  to  be  determined  by  the  short-lived  frenzy  of  an  inconsiderate  mul- 
titude, nor  by  the  artful  misrepresentations  of  an  insidious  writer.  With  this 
consideration  I  shall  rely  upon  the  candor  of  the  audience,  without  being  terrified 
by  the  prevailing  prejudice  of  the  day." 

November  4,  1785,  "  An  act  regulating  the  admission  of  attorneys  "  forbade  the 
employment  of  more  than  two  lawyers  on  either  side  in  any  suit.     November  15, 

1786,  an  "  Act  for  rendering  processes  in  law  less  expensive"  limited  the  number 
to  one  on  either  side  "  in  any  cause  before  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas." 

But  the  people  wished  further  restrictions,  and   on   Thursday,  October    18, 

1787,  it  was  ordered  in  the  House  of  Representatives  that  "  Dr.  Holton,  Mr. 
Wiiite  &  Mr.  Dawes,  be  a  committee  to  revise  the  laws  for  rendering  processes 
in  law  less  expensive  and  report  such  alterations  as  may  be  necessary  to  be  made 
therein."  (MS.  Journal  of  the  House,  p.  155.)  And  five  days  later  the  Senate 
took  action:  "  The  Hon.  Peter  Coffin,  Esq.  bro't  down  the  following  order,  viz: 
In  Senate,  Oct.  23,  1787,  Ordered  that  Aaron  Wood  &  Benj'n  Austin,  Junior, 
Esq'rs,  with  such  as  the  Hon.  House  may  join,  be  a  committee  to  bring  in  a  bill 
for  regulating  the  practice  of  the  law  in  this  Commonwealth  &  for  establishing 
fees  for  attorneys,  practitioners  &  witnesses."  The  House  concurred  at  once 
and  appointed  Mr.  Carnes,  Dr.  Coney  and  Mr.  Clarke.  (House  MS.  Journal, 
p.  173,  October  23,  1787  ) 

On  Wednesday,  October  31,  a  bill  for  this  purpose  was  considered  in  the 
Senate,  and  the  second  reading  was  assigned  for  Thursday  at  10  o'clock,  the  day 
before  that  on  which  J.  Q.  Adams  breakfasted  with  Stedman  (MS.  Journal  of  the 
Senate,  p.  183).  There  is  no  record  that  it  came  up  on  the  date  assigned  ;  but,  on 
Tuesday,  November  6,  it  was  negatived  in  the  Senate,  and  notice  to  that  effect 
was  sent  to  the  House. 

In  the  issue  of  the  "  Massachusetts  Centinel "  for  Wednesday,  November  21, 
1787,  a  similar  action  by  the  House  is  recorded  as  follows:  — 

"  Last  evening  a  bill  for  regulating  the  practice  of  the  law,  was  debated  and 
finally  rejected  in  the  House  of  Representatives — although  Mr.  Carnes,  in  a 
lengthy  speech  —  Did  a  tale  unfold  —  (Whose  lightest  word  would  harrow  up  the 
soul)  of  Lawyer's  impositions,  charges,  fees,  enough  to  make  the  hair  to  stand  on 
end,  like  quills  upon  the  fretful  Porcupine." 

1  Colonel  Edward  Wigglesworth,  of  Newburyport,  was  a  cousin  of  Professor 
Edward  Wigglesworth,  of  Cambridge.  They  were  grandsons  of  the  author  of 
"  The  Day  of  Doom." 

2  John  Murray  Forbes,  classmate  of  J.  Q.  Adams.  Under  date  of  March  28, 
1787,  J.  Q.  Adams  wrote  :  "John  Forbes  of  Cambridge  was  fifteen  the  13th  of  last 
August.  He  is  the  youngest  person  in  the  class,  and  his  entering  the  university 
at  80  early  a  period  has  been  an  essential  injury  to  him.     By  being  left  so  much 


*  James  Grant  Forbes,  an  elder  brother  of  John  Murray  Forbes  ;  born  Novem- 
ber 22,  1769;  commissioned  Lieutenant-Colonel  of  the  Forty-Second  Infantry, 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  59 

before  dinner.  It  was  almost  five  o'clock,  when  I  got  on  my  horse,  and 
took  leave  of  Forbes  and  Packard.     Just  after  dusk,  I  got  into  Boston. 

to  his  own  direction  at  twelve  years  of  age,  he  acquired  habits  of  indolence  and 
idleness  which  are  not  easily  shaken  off.  He  has  an  uncommon  share  of  wit  and 
an  extraordinary  memory ;  but  he  has  not  sufficiently  learnt  to  respect  himself. 
As  he  has  always  found  his  fellow  students  ready  to  laugh  at  his  satirical 
wit,  he  has  acquired  a  great  degree  of  impudence,  and  rather  than  miss  a  joke 
fills  liis  conversation  frequently  with  the  most  low  lived  scurrility.  As  he  seldom 
loses  much  of  liis  time  in  tliinking,  he  is  not  sensible  tiiat  the  very  persons  wiio 
applaud  his  satire  despise  the  speaker,  or  that  the  reason  why  no  notice  is  taken 
of  his  insults  [is]  because  he  is  supposed  to  have  no  meaning  in  what  he  says.  His 
mind  like  tlie  sand  will  receive  any  impression,  and  the  impression  will  last  about 
as  long.  All  these  foibles  however  may  be  attributed  to  his  youth,  and  it  is  to 
be  hoped  a  few  years  of  experience  will  correct  them  ;  he  is  always  good-natured, 
and  has  a  great  deal  of  sensibility,  with  an  excellent  genius  which  wants  nothing 
but  cultivation  to  make  it  flourish  among  the  first.  I  have  been  intimate  with 
him  since  I  entered  College  and  have  always  endeavoured  to  retain  the  same 
sentiments  concerning  him,  though  his  friendship  for  me  appears  to  ebb  and  flow 
as  frequently  as  the  tide.  If  he  should  throw  off  those  childish  follies  which  now 
disgrace  his  character,  and  apply  with  diligence  to  study,  he  would  be  an  honour 
to  his  friends  and  an  ornament  to  society."  Born  in  St.  Augustine,  Fla., 
August  13, 1771,  his  father  being  the  rector  there ;  brought  b}'  his  motiier,  Dorotliy 
Murray,  of  Milton,  to  Massachusetts  in  1773;  prepared  for  college  by  Dr.  Samuel 
Kendal,  of  Weston;  was  engaged  in  the  practice  of  law  in  Boston,  1794;  after 
179G  lived  mostly  abroad.  In  1801  appointed  consul-general  for  the  north  of 
Europe,  residing  at  Hamburg  and  Copenhagen  ;  November  18,  1819,  recom- 
mended by  J.  Q.  Adams  to  Monroe  as  special  agent  to  the  government  of  Chili,  to 
demand  restitution  of  property  taken  from  American  citizens  by  Lord  Cochrane 
within  its  jurisdiction  ;  appointed  agent  for  commerce  and  seamen  to  Buenos 
Ayres,  or  Chili,  as  the  existing  agent,  B.  Prevost,  might  choose  (instructions 
dated  July  5,  1820)  ;  appointed  Secretary  of  Legation  at  Buenos  Ayres  in  182.3 
to  Caesar  Rodney,  Charge'  d'Affaires,  who  died  June,  1824;  nominated  by  J.  Q. 
Adams,  March  5,  1825,  Charge  d'Affaires  at  Buenos  Ayres ;  died  at  his  post 
June  14,  1831.  A  strain  of  boyishness  still  lingered,  apparently  to  the  end; 
being  troubled  with  gout,  he  is  said  to  have  chosen  for  his  crest  "a  gouty  foot 
couchant,  crossed  by  two  crutches  rampant,"  with  the  motto,  "  Toujours  souf- 
frant,  jamais  triste."  He  never  married.  See  J.  Q.  Adams,  Memoirs,  vol.  iv. 
pp.  443,  445;  vol.  v.  pp.  129,  157,  103,  164  ;  vol.  vi.  p.  520  ;  American  State  Papers, 
Foreign  Relations,  vol.  iv.  pp.  820-826 ;  vol.  vi.  p.  281,  etc. ;  A.  K.  Teele,  Hist,  of 
Milton,  pp.  567,  568.  

August  1,  1813 ;  served  under  General  Jackson  ;  was  at  one  time  commander  at 
Staten  Island.  When  McGregor  was  ruling  at  Amelia  Island,  Forbes  was  there, 
and  was  invited  to  become  a  member  of  the  sham  legislature  at  Fernandino,  but 
declined.  Later,  in  April,  1818,  he  gave  J.  Q.  Adams  "many  particulars  of  the 
proceedings  of  the  sham  patriots  under  McGregor  and  Aury,  and  of  the  characters 
of  the  men,  confirming  everything  that  has  been  said  of  their  profligacy."  In  1820 
he  again  gave  valuable  information  as  to  the  pretended  port  of  St.  Joseph, 
and  the  case  of  the  Apollon.  In  March,  1821,  J.  Q.  Adams  recommended  him  to 
the  President  "as  Commissioner  to  carry  tlie  order  from  the  King  of  Spain  to 
the  Governor  and  Captain-General  of  Cuba  for  the  delivery  of  the  Floridas  and 
of  tlie  archives  belonging  to  them.  The  President  assented  to  this  appointment. 
I  sent  for  Forbes,  who  came  to  the  ofBce  and  agreed  to  go."     How  wearisome 


60  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

Went  to  Mr.  Dawes's,  and  found  Wm.  Cranch  with  whom  I  went  and 
pass'd  the  evening  at  Dr.  Tufts's  lodgings.      Lodg'd  at  Mr.  W.  Smith's. 

3d.  Between  eight  and  nine  this  morning,  I  cross'd  Charlestown  and 
Maiden  bridges.  I  rode  as  far  as  Danvers  before  I  stopp'd.  There  I 
found  Mr.  W.  Parsons^  and  his  wife,  Mr.  T.  Parsons,  and  Mr.  J. 
Tracey.  They  started  from  thence  before  me,  but  I  came  up  with  them 
a^-ain  in  Ipswich,  where  we  dined  at  Roman's  tavern.  Parsons  was 
quite  witty,  but  strained  rather  too  much  for  it,  as  he  frequently  does. 
"  John,"  said  he  to  Tracey,  "  who  made  you  adjutant  general  ?  "  "  Mr. 
Bowdoin."  "Strange!  how  the  wisest  men  will  err  sometimes!" 
This  kind  of  wit  may,  I  think,  be  compared  to  a  sky  rocket,  which 
spends  all  its  force  in  hissing,  and  then  disappoints  us  with  such  a 
weak  explosion  that  it  can  scarcely  be  heard.  But  wit  to  be  pleasing 
must,  I  think,  be  unexpected,  like  the  lightening  which  flashes  in  our 
eyes.  From  Ipswich  I  rode  in  company  with  them  to  Newbury,  and 
at  about  sunset  I  return'd  my  horse  to  his  owner.  I  met  Thompson 
in  the  stx-eet,  and  went  with  him  to  Putnam's  lodgings.  He  stay'd  oidy 
a  few  minutes,  but  I  tarried  there  till  almost  nine  o'clock,  when  I  came 
home  and  retired  to  bed. 

4th.  I  was  so  much  fatigued  in  consequence  of  my  yesterday's  ride 
that  I  did  not  attend  meeting.  I  wrote  some  lines  at  home,  and  finished 
reading  the  first  volume  of  Buffon's  Theory  of  the  Earth.^    I  am  exceed- 

his  mission  was  may  be  seen  in  his  despatches.  See  American  State  Papers, 
Foreign  Relations,  vol.  iv.  pp.  741-748;  iMemoirs,  vol.  iv.  pp.  74-7G;  vol.  v. 
pp.  1'j6,  322,  418,  420,  422;  A.  K.  Teele,  Hist,  of  Milton,  p.  567. 

1  William  Parsons,  brother  of  Theophilus  Parsons,  born  m  ByfieM  August  6, 
1755 ;  a  sailor  and  shipmaster  for  five  years  ;  moved  to  Eosion  to  engage  in 
commerce  in  1780,  with  an  office  (in  1780)  on  Parsons's  wharf  and  a  liouse  on 
South  Street;  "  an  invalid  from  cliildhood,"  yet  outlived  all  his  connection,  and 
died  March,  1837,  the  "  oldest  merchant  and  shipowner  in  the  city."  Memoir 
of  Theophilus  Parsons,  by  his  son,  Theophilus  Parsons,  pp.  18,  331,  332  ;  A. 
Young,  Memorial  Discourse  of  March  26,  1837;    Boston  Directory  for  1789. 

2  Between  1781  and  1785  there  was  published  at  Edinburgii  an  English  trans- 
lation in  nine  volumes  of  the  works  of  the  French  scientist,  George  Louis  Leclerc 
de  BufTon  (1707-1788),  the  precursor  of  Cuvier.  "The  Theory  of  the  Earth" 
and  "  The  Natural  History  of  Man  "  formed  parts  of  this  larger  work.  The  origi- 
nal publication  in  French  was  noteworthy  for  its  literary  merit.  Cuvier,  J.  Q. 
Adams's  junior  by  two  years,  owed  his  interest  in  natural  history  to  Burton,  so 
]\Irs.  R.  Lee,  the  pupil  and  intimate  friend  of  Cuvier,  wrote.  As  a  boy  he  "  was 
never  without  a  volume  of  this  author  in  his  pocket,  which  was  read  again  and 
again.  .  .  .  The  admiration  which  he  felt  at  this  youthful  period  for  his  great 
predecessor  never  ceased,  and  in  public  as  well  as  private  circles,  he  never  failed 
to  e.\press  it.  The  charms  of  Buffon's  style,  a  beauty  to  which  M.  Cuvier  was  very 
sensible,  had  always  afforded  him  the  highest  pleasure,  and  he  felt  a  sort  of  grati- 
tude to  him,  not  only  for  the  great  zeal  he  had  evinced  in  the  cause  of  natural 
history,  not  only  for  the  enjoyment  afforded  to  his  youthful  leisure,  but  for  the 
many  proselytes  who  had  been  attracted  by  the  magic  of  his  language."  Memoirs 
of  liaroa  Cuvier,  pp.  11, 12. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  61 

ingly  pleased  with  the  style  and  manner  of  this  writer.  It  is  concise, 
nervous,  and  elegant.  The  theory  I  cannot  properly  judge  of  till  I  get 
through  the  other  volume. 

5th.  I  attended  at  the  office.  Amory  was  there  ;  return'd  yester- 
day from  Salem.  Tovvnseud  went  to  Boston  last  week,  and  has  not 
yet  return'd.  In  the  afternoon,  we  attended  the  funeral  of  Mrs.  Daven- 
port, a  sister  of  Mr.  Parsons;  she  died  of  a  consumption  a  few  days 
since.  Little  and  Thomson  pass'd  an  hour  with  me  in  the  evening, 
after  which  I  went  with  the  latter  to  Mr.  Atkins's.  Thomson  was  much 
affected  on  hearing  of  the  death  of  one  of  his  school-hoys,  who  died  of 
the  scarlet  fever,  after  a  very  short  illness.  I  cannot  write  yet  in  the 
evening,  for  want  of  fire. 

6th.  Mr.  Parsons  went  this  morning  to  Salem,  where  the  Supreme 
Court  sits  this  week.  I  pass'd  this  evening  with  Thomson  at  the  otfice, 
and  had  a  great  deal  of  conversation  with  him  upon  divers  subjects.  I 
feel  my  attachment  for  this  young  gentleman  daily  increasing.  The 
more  I  become  acquainted  with  him,  the  more  my  expectation  of  enjoy- 
ing great  benefit  and  satisfaction  from  an  intimacy  with  him  increases. 
Indeed  I  have  hitherto  had  reason  to  think  myself  fortunate  in  ray 
fellow  students,  who  are  all  very  agreeable,  although  their  dispositions 
are  essentially  different.  I  jiass'd  an  hour  this  forenoon  very  sociably 
witli  Miss  Jones. 

7th.  Quite  industrious  this  day  in  copying  forms.  Alone  ia  the 
office  a  great  part  of  the  day.  Amory,  even  when  he  is  in  town,  is 
not  very  attentive  at  the  office.     I  pass'd  the  evening  with  Putnam. 

8th.  Finished  my  book  of  forms,  and  wrote  an  index  to  them.  So 
that  henceforth,  I  shall  be  able  to  attend  more  steadily  to  Blackstone. 
Towusend  return'd  this  morning  from  Boston. 

9th.  Amory  went  to  Salem  this  afternoon.  They  have  a  ball  there 
this  evening,  said  to  be  given  to  the  Court.  Amory  went  to  attend  it. 
I  pass'd  the  evening  at  Mr.  Bradbury's,  where  we  play'd  a  number  of 
tunes  in  concert,  besides  a  cheating  game  of  cards.  I  got  through  the 
theory  of  the  earth.  I  am  more  and  more  pleased  with  the  author. 
One  part  of  his  theory  is  merely  hypothetical,  and  might  perhaps  be 
called  extravagant.  lie  supposes  the  earth  and  the  other  planets 
were  originally  a  part  of  the  sun,  and  that  they  were  sever'd  from  it 
by  the  shock  of  a  comet,  yet  even  in  this  part  his  reasoning  is  very 
ingenious  ;  the  other  part  of  his  theory  is  founded  upon  facts ;  he  lays 
very  justly  much  more  stress  upon  this,  and  his  arguments  are  very 
strong  and  convincing.  He  supposes  that  the  continents  and  islands 
which  are  now  inhabited  were  covered  by  the  waters  of  the  ocean,  and 
that  they  will  be  so  again ;  that  at  some  future  period  the  Alps,  the 
Pyrenees,  and  the  Andees  will  be  at  the  bottom  of  the  sea,  and  that 
the  earth  now  beneath  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  oceans  will  be  the 


52  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

abodes  of  men,  adorned  with  splendid  cities,  and  crowned  with  vener- 
able forests.  The  phenomena  from  which  he  deduces  his  strongest 
arguments  are  the  continual  motion  of  the  sea  from  east  to  west,  the 
correspondent  angles  of  mountains,  the  horizontal  and  parallel  position 
of  the  different  strata  of  earth,  and  the  innumerable  quantities  of  sea 
shells  and  other  marine  productions  found  in  all  parts  of  the  earth  at 
a  considerable  depth  under-ground.  If  the  author  is  sometimes  mis- 
taken, he  is  certainly  everywhere  philosophical. 

10th.  Attended  at  the  office  as  usual,  and  read  Blackstone.  Passed 
the  evening  with  Putnam  at  his  lodgings.  Began  to  read  Buffon's 
Natural  History  of  Man. 

11  th.  Attended  meeting,  with  Townsend,  the  whole  day  at  Dr.  Tuck- 
er's ;  much  pleased  with  this  gentleman  as  a  preacher.  Little  came 
home  with  me.  In  the  evening  Williams  came  in,  —  from  Salem  yes- 
terday.    We  went  with  him  to  Putnam's  and  finished  the  evening. 

12th.  I  had  some  writing  which  I  wished  to  do  this  day,  and  I 
therefore  did  not  attend  at  the  office.  Williams  and  Little  dined,  and 
past  the  afternoon  with  me.  Townsend  came  in  just  before  dark  ;  I 
went  with  him  and  spent  an  hour  or  two  at  Mr.  Atkins's.  This  family 
is  very  agreeable.  Mrs.  Atkins  is  a  sociable,  cheerful,  sensible  old  lady  ; 
IMiss  A.  is  handsome,  and  a  favorite  of  Townsend's.  I  went  home 
with  Townsend  and  supped  there.     The  evening  was  excessively  dark. 

13th.  Williams  set  out  this  morning  for  Cambridge.  I  at  length 
got  me  some  wood,  and  had  a  fire  in  my  chamber,  which  will  enable 
me  henceforth  to  study  more  in  the  evenings.  Thompson  was  with  me 
an  hour  or  two  this  night. 

14th.  I  find  I  am  getting  fast  into  the  same  unmeaning  dull  same- 
ness, which  has  frequently  abbreviated  the  space  of  a  day  in  these 
pages.  Study  does  not  consist  merely  in  acquiring  the  ideas  of  others, 
but  it  is  necessary  by  reflection  to  endeavour  to  form  some  for  our- 
selves. But  I  am  fearful  that  I  have  not  yet  acquired  sufficient  knowl- 
edge to  derive  much  advantage  from  my  own  speculations.  Ars  longa, 
vita  brevis,  is  a  maxim  the  truth  of  which  I  am  experiencinir  daily 
more  and  more.  There  is  not  one  art  or  science  in  which  I  have  any 
degree  of  proficiency,  and  I  have  now  undertaken  the  study  of  a  pro- 
fession which  alone  ought  to  employ  all  the  time  I  can  devote  to  study 
for  twenty  years  to  come.  My  eyes  and  my  health  begin  to  fail,  and  I 
do  not  feel  that  ardor  for  application  which  I  should  have  to  be  a 
man  of  science.  In  short  the  more  I  do,  the  more  I  find  to  do  ;  and  it 
is  almost  discouraging,  to  see  one's  labour  increase,  as  we  proceed  in  it. 

15th.  Amory  and  Thompson  went  upon  a  dancing  party  yesterday^ 
they  invited  me  to  join  them,  but  I  did  not  feel  disposed.  This  after- 
noon I  went  with  Townsend,  and  attended  Mr.  Spring's  ^  lecture.     I  was 

^  Rev.  Samuel  Spring  (Princeton,  1771),  in  1787  a  man  of  about  forty,  pastor 
of  the  North  (Congregational)  Church  of  Newburyport  over  forty  years  (1777- 


DIARY   OP  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  63 

much  better  pleased  than  I  expected  to  be  with  this  gentleman's 
preaching.  His  sentiments  are  extremely  contracted  and  illiberal,  and 
he  maintains  them  with  the  zeal  and  enthusiasm  of  a  bigot,  but  his 
delivery  is  very  agreeable,  and  I  believe  his  devotion  sincere.  Although 
I  shall  never  be  a  convert  to  his  principles,  I  will  not  condemn  them  as 
impious  and  heretical.  Little,  Putnam,  and  I  spent  the  evening  with 
Thomson,  at  his  father's.  A  letter  from  W.  S.  was  canvassed ;  it  was 
stiff,  inelegant  and  trivial.  I  gave  this  as  my  opinion,  and  although 
they  charged  me  with  being  prejudiced  against  the  writer,  yet  I  found 
their  sentiments  on  this  point  agreed  perfectly  with  mine. 

16th.  I  finished  the  second  volume  of  Blackstone,  and  began  upon 
the  third,  which  treats  of  private  wrongs.  And  this  evening  I  got 
through  Buffon's  Natural  History  of  Man,  which  is  still  more  enter- 
taining than  The  Theory  of  the  Earth. 

17th.  I  set  out  for  Haverhill  between  three  and  four  this  afternoon, 
and  arrived  at  Mr.  White's  a  little  after  five.  Leonard  was  at  my  lodg- 
ings last  Tuesday,  and  made  me  promise  I  would  stay  with  him  the  next 
time  1  should  go  to  that  town.  I  was  inform'd  of  Mr.  Thaxter's  mar- 
riage. Last  Tuesday  was  the  day  when  he  departed  the  life  of  a  bachelor 
and  was  ushered  into  a  new  kind  of  existence.  His  friends  had  ex- 
pected it  would  not  be  till  next  Tuesday,  but  he  fairly  gave  them  the 
slip.  I  went  up  to  Mr.  Shaw's  this  evening,  and  spent  an  hour. 
Lodg'd  at  Mr.  White's. 

18th.  In  the  forenoon  I  attended  at  Mr.  Smith's  meeting:  he  preaches 
without  notes,  and,  like  all  the  preachers  who  make  a  practice  of  this 
that  I  ever  heard,  often  repeats  the  same  sentiments.  In  the  after- 
noon I  went  to  hear  Mr.  Shaw.  After  meeting  I  went  up  there,  and 
pass'd  part  of  the  evening.  Mr.  Rediugton  and  Captain  Marsh  and 
Deacon  Eames  were  there. 

19th.  I  lodg'd  at  Mr.  White's  again  last  night;  went  this  morning  up 
to  Mr.  Shaw's  and  past  an  hour ;  and  between  ten  and  eleven  set  off 
for  Newbury-Port.  Got  home  at  about  one.  Called  at  the  office  ;  found 
Amory  was  gone  to  Salem  for  a  week.  Mr.  Parsons  says,  he  will  spoil 
himself  in  spite  of  anything  that  can  be  done.  Townseud  dined  with  me. 
We  were  not  much  in  the  office  in  the  afternoon.  Little  spent  the 
evening  with  me.     Rather  unwell. 

1819)  ;  son  of  an  "  opulent  farmer  "  of  Northbridge  ;  studied  theology  under  Drs. 
Witlierspoon,  Hopkins,  Bellamy,  and  West ;  served  as  a  chaplain  in  General 
Arnold's  disastrous  expedition  to  Canada  in  1775;  installed  at  Newburyport,  Au- 
gust, 1777  ;  died  March,  1819  ;  published  a  Dialogue  on  Duty  and  several  ser- 
mons ;  was  instrumental  in  founding  the  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for 
Foreign  Missions,  Andover  Theological  Seminary,  and  the  American  Bible  So- 
ciety. Gardiner  Spring,  more  than  sixty  years  pastor  of  the  Brick  Presbyterian 
Church  in  New  York  City,  was  his  son.  Dunning,  Congregationalists  in  Amer- 
ica, p.  287;  Contributions  to  the  Ecclesiastical  History  of  Essex  County,  pp. 
86-92. 


64  DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

20tli.  Proceed  slowly  in  the  third  volume  of  Blackstone.  As  this  ia 
the  most  important  author  of  all  those  that  will  occur,  I  make  large  ex- 
tracts from  him,  which  takes  me  up  so  much  time  that  I  canuot  read  above 
twenty  or  thirty  pages  in  a  day.  Townsend  pass'd  the  evening  at  my 
lodgings,  —  dull  weather.  This  afternoon  there  was  a  town-meeting 
for  the  purpose  of  choosing  members  to  represent  this  town  in  the  State 
Convention  which  is  to  meet  in  January,  and  canvass  the  proposed 
Federal  Constitution.  The  persons  chosen  were  Mr.  King,^  Judge 
Greenleaf,  Mr.  Parsons,  and  Gen'  Titcomb.  They  are  all  in  favour  of 
the  Constitution,  and  the  town  appears  to  be  very  unanimous  for  it. 

21st.  I  this  morning  requested  of  Mr.  Parsons  his  opinion,  whether 
it  would  be  most  advantageous  for  me  to  pursue  the  professional  study 
in  those  hours  when  I  should  not  attend  at  the  office  ;  or  whether  ib 
would  be  best  to  devote  those  of  my  evenings  which  I  shall  pass  at  my 
own  lodgings,  to  other  purposes,  and  a  diversity  of  studies.  lie  an- 
swered by  observing  that  I  could  not  attend  to  any  useful  branch  of 
science  in  which  I  should  not  find  my  account ;  he  would  rather 
advise  me  to  read  a  number  of  ethic  writers.  It  was  necessary  for  a 
person  going  into  the  profession  of  the  law  to  have  principles  strongly 
established ;  otherwise,  however  amiable  and  however  honest  his 
disposition  might  be,  yet  the  necessity  he  is  under  of  defending  indis- 
criminately the  good  and  the  bad,  the  right,  and  the  wrong,  would 
imperceptibly  lead  him  into  universal  skepticism.  He  advised  also 
Quinctilian  and  the  best  writers  upon  Christianity.  He  himself,  he 
said,  was  convinced  of  the  truth  of  the  Christian  religion ;  he  believed 
revelation,  and  it  was  his  reason  that  had  been  convinced,  for  he 
entered  upon  the  world  rather  prejudiced  against  revelation.  It 
stormed  in  the  afternoon.  I  pass'd  part  of  the  evening  at  Mr.  Par- 
sons's,  and  the  remainder  with  Townsend  at  his  lodgings. 

22d.  Weather  remarkably  mild  for  the  season.  I  have  been  rather 
unwell  for  a  week  or  ten  days  back,  which  prevents  me  from  applying 
myself  with  so  much  assiduity  as  I  should  wish  to.  I  passed  this 
evening  with  Thompson  and  Putnam  at  Little's.  We  were  very 
sociable  and  cheerful.  .  .  . 

23d.  The  events  of  the  day  were  quite  uninteresting.  I  had  how- 
ever an  opportunity  to  observe  the  effects  of  the  passions,  how  despot- 
ically they  rule  !  how  they  bend  and  master  the  greatest  and  the  wisest 
geniuses!  'T  is  a  pity!  'tis  great  pity!  that  prudence  should  desert 
people  when  they  have  the  most  need  of  it.  'T  is  pity  that  such  a 
mean,  little,  dirty  passion  as  envy  should  be  the  vice  of  the  most  capa- 

1  Rufus  King  (H.  C.  1777),  formerly  a  law  student  with  Theophilus  Parsons  ; 
entered  political  life  in  1784  as  a  Representative  from  Newburyport ;  had  just  re- 
turned from  the  Constitutional  Convention  of  1787.  For  Judge  Benjamin  Green- 
leaf  and  General  Titcomb,  see  supra,  pp.  37,  47. 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  65 

cions  souls.  Human  Nature,  how  inexplicable  art  thou !  Oh,  may  I 
learn  before  I  advance  upon  the  political  stage  (if  I  ever  do)  not  to  put 
my  trust  in  thee  !  This  grave  apostrophe,  with  the  lines  that  precede 
it,  may  be  mysterious  to  you,  sir,  but  if  so,  remember  that  it  is  none  of 
your  business  —  and  so  I  wish  you  good  night. 

24th.  I  went  in  the  forenoon  and  exhibited  my  complaints  to  Dr. 
Swett,  but  he  told  me  they  were  not  worth  speaking  of;  and  so  I  will 
e'en  let  them  take  their  chance.  This  afternoon  Townsend  and  I 
went  down  to  Mr.  Tracey's,  upon  a  disagreeable  piece  of  business,  but 
which  we  got  through  quite  comfortably.  Ben  Hooper  called  on  me 
in  the  evening.  I  have  again  begun  upon  Gibbon's  Roman  History, 
and  hope  I  shall  this  time  go  through.  I  read  the  first  volume  last 
spring ;  but  at  that  time  my  avocations  were  so  numerous  that  I  could 
not  proceed  in  reading  the  book.  I  admire  the  style,  and  in  general 
the  sentiment,  though  I  tliiiik  there  is  sometimes  an  affectation  of  wit 
in  the  one,  and  sometimes  a  glaring  tinsel  in  the  other,  which  are  far 
beneath  the  majestic  simplicity  of  nature. 

25th.  1  thought  I  was  too  unwell  to  pass  two  hours  in  a  cold  meeting 
house  this  forenoon,  and  staid  at  home.  In  the  afternoon  I  ventured 
out,  and  went  with  Townsend  to  Dr.  Tucker's  meeting-house  ;  but  find- 
ing there  was  no  service  there,  we  went  to  church.  Parson  Bass  ^  is 
not  much  of  an  orator,  and  was  rather  negligent  in  treating  common 
place  topics  in  common  place  language.  Drank  tea  at  Mrs.  Hooper's, 
and  pass'd  the  evening  at  Mr.  J.  Tracy's.  Capt"  Fletcher  ^  was  there. 
Tracy  ^  was  quite  warm  upon  the  subject  of  the  late  election.  He  is  a 
militia  officer,  and  possessed  very  strongly  of  the  esprit  de  corps.  He 
was  offended  that  Gen'  Titcomb  should  come  in  the  last  of  the  four 
members  for  this  town ;  and,  in  the  course  of  conversation,  went  rather 
beyond  the  bounds  of  prudence. 

26th.  I  took  an  additional  cold  yesterday,  and  am  still  more  unwell 
than  I  have  been.  I  pass'd  the  evening  at  my  lodgings,  reading  Gibbon 
and  translating  a  piece  from  the  French. 

1  Rev.  Edward  Bass  (H.  C.  1744),  rector  of  St.  Paul's  (Episcopal)  Church  in 
Newburyport,  1752-1803;  born  in  Dorchester  November  23,  1726;  one  of  the 
few  Episcopal  clergymen  who  remained,  and  his  parisliioners  with  him,  during 
and  after  the  war,  the  church  and  the  country  attaining  independence  and  self- 
support  in  tlie  same  year;  in  1797,  when  over  seventy  years  of  age,  cliosen 
the  first  bishop  of  Massachusetts  and  Rhode  Island,  holding  the  two  offices  of 
bishop  and  rector  for  six  years;  died  September  10,  1803.  Among  his  parish- 
ioners were  many  college-bred  merchants,  as  Jonathan  Jackson,  Tristram  Dalton, 
John  Tracy,  Stephen  Hooper;  also  Dudley  Atkins,  etc.  D.  D.  Addison,  Life 
and  Times  of  Edward  Bass  ;  J.  J.  Currier,  "  Quid  Newbury,"  pp.  403-416. 

2  Presumably  John  Fletcher,  sea-captain,  Treasurer  of  the  Marine  Society  of 
Newburyport.     Fleet's  Almanack  for  1787. 

2  John  Tracy  was  Deputy  Adjutant-General  of  the  militia  of  Essex  County, 
of  which  Jonathan  Titcomb  was  Major-General. 


GQ  DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

27th.  Better  than  I  have  been  for  these  ten  days  past ;  all  the  time 
again  at  the  office  or  at  my  own  lodgings.  It  is  of  great  advantage  to  us 
to  have  Mr.  Parsons  in  the  office.  He  is  in  himself  a  law-library,  and 
a  proficient  in  every  useful  branch  of  science  ;  but  his  chief  excellency 
is,  that  no  student  can  be  more  fond  of  proposing  questions  than  he  is 
of  solving  them.  He  is  never  at  a  loss,  and  always  gives  a  full  and 
ample  account,  not  only  of  the  subject  proposed,  but  of  all  matters 
which  have  any  intimate  connection  with  it.  I  am  persuaded  that 
the  advantage  of  having  such  an  instructor  is  very  great,  and  I  hope 
I  shall  not  misimprove  it,  as  some  of  his  pupils  have  done.  AVhere 
nature  is  deficient,  application  must  supply  her  place ;  and,  if  Nature 
is  liberal,  there  is  so  much  more  reason  for  turning  her  partiality  ta 
advantage.     For 

Nature  never  lends 

The  smallest  scruple  of  her  excellence, 

But  like  a  thrifty  goddess  she  determines 

Herself  the  glory  of  a  creditor, 

Both  thanks  and  use.^ 

28th.  .  .  .  Mr.  Parsons,  after  making  much  difficulty,  has  finally 
consented  that  we  should  pass  the  evenings  till  eight  o'clock  at  the 
office,  at  Townsend's  importunity.  It  will  make  at  this  season  a  large 
addition  to  the  time  which  we  employ  in  the  professional  studies, 
though  I  do  not  know  that  it  will  be  of  any  great  advantage  to  me. 

29th.  Thanksgiving  day :  between  eight  and  nine  o'clock  this  morn- 
ing I  set  out  for  Haverhill  and  got  to  Mr.  Shaw's  a  little  before  eleven. 
I  attended  meeting.  Mr.  Shaw  preach'd  a  long  sermon  and  a  good 
one.  Mr.  Parker  and  his  wife  dined  with  us.  I  did  not  admire  them, 
the  woman  particularly :  she  has  a  hard  masculine  countenance,  and 
black  eyes  which  express  as  much  softness  as  those  of  a  tyger.  But 
she  is  a  very  good  woman;  only  has  rather  too  much  temper,  or  as  it 
is  called  in  New-England  too  much  stujf.  I  went  down  to  Mr.  White's 
in  the  evening,  but  Leonard  was  not  at  home.  I  was  going  to  Mr. 
Duncan's,  but  met  all  the  younger  part  of  the  family  in  the  street.  I 
found  Leonard  White  at  Mr.  Shaw's,  and  Mr.  Flint  who  came  this 
day  from  Lincoln. 

30th.  I  passed  the  forenoon  with  Leonard,  who  has  been  making 
two  or  three  unsuccessful  attempts  to  make  phosphorus ;  his  glass  vials 
melt  in  the  process.  Dined  at  Mr.  Duncan's.  Mrs.  Thaxter  has  got 
two  or  three  wrinkles  on  her  forehead.  I  went  to  see  the  house  in 
which  they  are  to  live  —  pass'd  the  afternoon  with  him.  His  honey 
moon  is  not  yet  past.     I  was  at  Mr.  White's  in  the  evening. 

1  Measure  for  Measure,  Act  i.  Scene  1. 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  67 

Saturday,  December  1st;  1787. 

I  dined  at  Mr.  White's ;  after  dinner  I  went  to  Mr.  Shaw's,  stay'd 
about  an  hour,  and  just  before  sun-set  departed  for  Newbury-Port. 
I  got  into  the  town  just  as  the  clock  struck  seven.  Pass'd  the  even- 
ing with  Putnam,  and  came  home  at  about  nine.  I  found  Dr.  Kil- 
ham  at  home.  He  return'd  from  Boston  on  Thursday ;  and  although 
his  conduct  during  the  late  session  of  the  General  Court,  upon  the 
subject  of  the  proposed  continental  constitution,  has  not  met  with  the 
approbation  of  his  constituents  in  general,  yet  I  think  he  is  very  much 
to  be  applauded  for  that  independance  of  spirit  which  disdains  to  sacri- 
fice a  sentiment  to  the  breath  of  popularity.^  But  men  are  too  apt 
to  suspect  the  motives  of  those  with  whom  they  differ  in  sentiment, 
and  although  in  this  country  religious  bigotry  is  almost  entirely  done 
away,  yet  the  same  principle,  in  another  garb,  appears  in  all  our 
political  manoeuvres. 

5th.  I  pass'd  the  evening  with  Little  and  Townsend  at  Miss  Caz- 
neau's.  We  play'd  commerce  and  whist ;  but  it  was  dull  work.  Miss 
Cazneau  has  nothing  in  her  person  to  recommend  her,  but  a  very  good 
shape  ;  her  complexion  is  very  dark,  and  not  very  clear,  —  no  feature 
of  her  face  is  peculiarly  agreeable  and  her  eyes  are  rather  unfavorable 
to  her.  A  capricious,  passionate,  imprudent  character  is  stamjied  upon 
her  behaviour.  She  displays  rather  too  much  levity,  and  a  trifling, 
uninteresting  vanity  is  conspicuous.  I  call  it  ^minteresting  vanity, 
because  there  is  a  certain  kind  of  vanity  that  I  have  observed  in  some 
women  which  is  exceedingly  interesting,  and  which  is  sometimes  pro- 
ductive of  such  pleasing  manners  that  I  should  be  at  a  loss  whether 
to  call  it  a  foible  or  an  accomplishment.  Miss  Tucker,  who  likewise 
passed  the  evening  there,  is  fair,  rather  too  large  for  gentility,  with  a 
countenance  which  has  not  sufficient  animation  or  expression  to  be  very 
strikingly  agreeable.  Her  manners  are  pleasing.  If  I  could  find  fault 
with  any  part  of  them,  it  would  be  with  the  appearance  of  an  affectation 
of  softness.  This  defect  is  not  uncommon ;  but  however  amiable  a  real 
sweetness  of  disposition  may  be,  this  appearance  of  it  in  the  manners 
is  not  calculated  to  win  my  heart.  However,  if  I  were  to  judge  of  the 
tempers  of  these  two  ladies  from  their  behaviour  this  evening,  I  should 
pronounce  the  latter  infinitely  the  most  amiable  of  the  two.  I  came 
home  at  about  nine,  in  the  evening. 

6th.  Spent  the  evening  with  Thompson  and  Little  at  Putnam's 
lodgings.  We  conversed  upon  a  diversity  of  subjects.  Law,  physic, 
history,  poetry,  religion  and  politics,  by  turns,  engaged  our  attention . 

1  See  "  Massachusetts  Centinel,"  October  27,  1787,  for  a  report  of  Dr.  Kil- 
ham's  speech  in  the  Legislature  in  opposition  to  the  Federal  Constitution. 


G8  DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

These  meetings  renew  the  recollection  of  those  happy  scenes  which 
we  have  all  gone  through  in  college ;  and  iu  this  manner  I  now  pass 
some  of  my  most  agreeable  hours.  But  after  I  came  home  this  even- 
ing, and  after  reading  an  hour  or  two,  I  felt  a  depression  of  spirits 
to  which  I  have  hitherto  been  entirely  a  stranger.  I  have  frequently 
felt  dull,  low  spirited,  in  a  manner  out  of  tune;  but  the  feelings  which 
I  now  experienced  were  different  from  what  I  ever  knew  before,  and 
such  as  I  hope  I  shall  never  again  experience :  they  kept  me  awake 
a  great  part  of  the  night,  and  when  I  finally  fell  asleep  they  disturbed 
my  rest  by  the  most  extravagant  dreams. 

7th.  Mr.  Parsons  has  recovered  in  a  great  measure  from  his  illness, 
so  that  he  was  the  chief  part  of  tliis  day  in  the  office.  I  spent  the 
evening  in  part  with  him  —  play'd  back-gammon  and  draughts.  At 
the  former  of  these  games  he  beats  me;  at  the  latter  I  beat  him.  I 
should  suppose  him  to  be  a  great  proficient  at  those  games  which 
require  reflection  and  a  train  of  reasoning,  which  is  very  much  the 
case  with  draughts ;  but  much  of  this  skill  depends  entirely  upon 
practice  in  which  he  is  deficient.  .  .  . 

8th.  .  .  .  Townsend  came  home  and  sat  an  hour  with  me.  We 
conversed  upon  several  topics,  but  chiefly  upon  ambition,  that  virtue 
or  vice,  according  as  it  is  directed.  We  did  not  perfectly  agree  upon 
the  subject,  though  our  sentiments  were  not  very  different.  In  the 
evening  I  wrote,  and  among  others  brought  myself  down  to  the  present 
hour  iu  this  book,  which  I  have  not  done  before  for  these  last  two 
months. 

9th.  Attended  Dr.  Tucker's  meeting  in  the  forenoon.  He  gave  us 
an  excellent  sermon  upon  the  story  of  Haman,  from  which  he  drew 
a  number  of  very  rational  reflections  upon  the  evils  of  pride,  haughti- 
ness and  a  revengefull  disposition.  In  the  afternoon  I  went  and  heard 
Mr.  Carey.  Townsend  called  upon  me  in  the  evening,  and  I  went 
with  him  to  Mr.  Atkins's,  where  we  stay'd  about  an  hour ;  after  which 
we  went  to  see  Thompson,  who  is  quite  unwell.  We  sat  half  an  hour 
below  with  Mr.  Thompson.  Parson  Spring^  was  there;  and  we  con- 
versed upon  the  topic  which  is  now  prevalent  —  the  Federal  Constitu- 
tion.    I  came  home  early  and  wrote  a  long  letter  to  W.  Cranch. 

10th.  This  forenoon  Townsend  set  off  for  Boston.  Mr.  Parsons 
intended  to  have  gone  likewise,  as  the  Supreme  Court  sits  by  adjoui-n- 
ment  there  this  week.  But  he  was  so  much  troubled  with  an  ague  in  his 
face  and  the  toothach,  that  he  could  not  go.  I  pass'd  the  evening 
with  Little  at  Dr.  Swett's.     Mrs.  Swett  ^  is  a  pretty  woman,  and  agree- 

1  See  supra,  p.  31. 

2  Mrs.  Charlotte  Bourne  Swett,  daughter  of  Judge  William  Bourne,  of  INIarble- 
head;  after  Dr.  Swett's  death  married  John  Taylor  Oilman,  of  Exeter,  Federalist 
Governor  of  New  Hampshire  1794-1805,  1813-1816.  Thaclier,  American  Medical 
Biography,  vol.  ii.  p.  109 ;  McCiintock,  History  of  New  Hampshire,  pp.  446-449. 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  69 

able ;  not  endow'd,  I  believe,  with  great  strength  of  mind ;  not  much  of 
a  reasoner,  nor  much  of  a  patriot,  and  professes  to  know  nothing  of 
politics,  which  she  supposes  to  be  entirely  out  of  the  sphere  of  the 
female  sex.  It  would  perhaps  be  as  well,  if  all  women  thought  so, 
and  conducted  upon  the  principle;  yet  I  wish  even  females  to  feel 
some  interest  in  the  welfare  of  their  country.  The  Dr.  is  a  man  of 
learning  and  ingenuity.  He  went  through  a  course  of  professional 
studies  in  Scotland,  and  has  travell'd  in  different  parts  of  Europe ;  but 
he  has  a  mean  idea  of  human  nature,  and  I  should  not  wonder  if  all 
physicians  had ;  for  they  are  incessantly  conversant  with  the  physicid 
defects  and  infirmities  of  mankind.  They  see  humanity  in  a  state  of 
humiliation,  and  it  is  no  wonder  if  they  have  no  idea  of  its  glory. 

11th.  Reading  Blackstone  all  day;  and  I  pass'd  the  evening  at  the 
office  till  eight;  after  which  I  went  and  past  an  hour  with  Putnam. 
F.  Bradbury  was  with  him.  We  had  some  conversation  upon  the 
stale  topic  of  self  love  and  disinterested  benevolence.  A  subject  upon 
which  I  have  very  frequently  conversed  with  many  different  persons, 
and,  notwitlistandiug  every  thing  that  I  have  heard  said  upon  the 
subject,  I  still  retain  the  opinion  which  I  adopted  when  I  first  reasoned 
upon  it.  I  will  not  venture  to  say  there  is  no  such  thing  as  disinter- 
ested benevolence,  but  I  must  say  that  after  searching  as  deeply  as 
possible  into  my  own  mind,  I  cannot  find  a  trace  of  it  there.  Talk'd 
with  Dr.  Kilham  upon  the  Federal  Constitution.  The  elections  which 
have  hitherto  been  made  in  different  parts  of  the  State,  appear  to  be 
generally  favorable  to  it. 

12th.  Tills  day  I  finished  reading  the  fourth  and  last  volume  of 
Blackstone's  Commentaries.  This  is  one  of  the  most  important  books 
in  the  profession,  and  1  have,  comparatively  speaking,  taken  more  time 
in  reading  it  than  I  probably  shall  for  any  other  book ;  yet  I  am  very 
far  from  being  master  of  it,  and  I  intend  before  the  end  of  my  three 
years,  if  I  should  live  and  have  my  health,  to  go  through  this  book 
once  or  twice  more.  I  began  in  the  afternoon  upon  Sullivan's  Lectures, 
and  read  a  few  pages ;  but  not  sufficient  to  get  an  idea  of  the  merits  of 
the  book.  Thompson  has  so  far  recovered,  that  he  was  at  the  office  in 
the  afternoon.  I  pass'd  the  evening  at  my  own  lodgings,  reading  and 
writing. 

13th.  The  repetition  of  the  same  events,  from  day  to  day,  is  the  only 
variety  which  can  supply  materials  for  this  record  of  my  transactions. 
Conversations  are  seldom  interesting.  New  characters  seldom  arise, 
and  I  am  employed  more  time  in  thinking  what  I  shall  say  for  one  day, 
than  I  am  in  writing  the  occurrences  of  a  week.  Fertility  of  imagina- 
tion might  supply  the  deficiency  of  materials,  but  my  soil  produces  no 
spontaneous  fruits  .  .  . 

14th.     I  was  about  an  hour  with  Dr.  Kilham  at  his  shop  immediately 


70  DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

after  dinner ;  I  took  up  one  of  the  volumes  of  Junius's  Letters,^  and 
carried  it  with  me  to  the  office.  I  read  the  whole  afternoon,  and  was 
interrupted  only  by  the  shadows  of  the  evening.  I  called  upon  Little, 
and  brought  him  home  with  me  to  my  lodgings.  We  pass'd  a  very 
sociable  evening  together.  After  he  was  gone,  I  took  up  again  my  vol- 
ume of  Junius,  and  just  before  I  finished  it  the  midnight  clock  re- 
minded me  that  the  hour  of  retirement  was  again  come  round.  This 
hour  and  that  of  rousing  from  the  night's  repose  are  equally  disagree- 
able to  me.  My  mind  seems  in  this  respect  to  partake  of  the  vis  iner- 
tias of  matter.  I  cannot  possibly  rise  early,  and  I  am  obliged  to  run 
forward  into  the  night  for  those  moments  of  contemplation  and  study 
which  perhaps  would  be  more  advantageously  taken  before  the  dawn  of 
day.^ 

15th.  A  violent  north-west  wind  blew  the  whole  day,  but  we  have 
no  snow  yet.  .  .  .  Spent  the  evening  with  Putnam,  who  has  lately 
taken  a  great  fancy  to  digging  in  metaphysical  ground,  though  he  ia 
not  perfectly  acquainted  with  the  nature  of  the  soil.  He  has  drunk  just 
enough  of  the  Pierian  spring  to  intoxicate  the  brain,  and  not  sufficient 
to  sober  him  again. 

16th.  I  waited  upon  Parson  Gary  this  forenoon,  in  expectation  of 
much  edification ;  but  he  gave  us  a  more  indifferent  sermon  than 
usual,  which,  in  addition  to  the  weather's  being  very  cold,  prevented 
me  from  going  in  the  afternoon,  instead  of  which  I  read  three  or  four 
of  Yorick's  sermons.^  Townseud,  who  returned  last  night  from  Boston, 
was  here  all  day.  In  the  evening  I  concluded  the  first  volume  of  Gib- 
bon's history.  The  two  last  chapters  which  treat  of  the  rise  and  pro- 
gress of  Christianity  are  written  neither  with  the  indulgence  of  a 
friend,  nor  even  with  the  candor  and  ingenuous  openness  which  an 
enemy  ought  ever  to  show.  The  sentiment  however  with  which  he 
concludes  the  volume  is  a  melancholy  truth ;  and  it  is  to  the  immortal 
honour  of  the  present  age  that  no  new  religious  sect  can  gain  ground, 
because  it  cannot  find  a  persecutor. 

17th.  I  have  continued  reading  in  Sullivan's  Lectures.  The  book  is 
entertaining,  and  the  author*  so  far  as  he  goes  appears  to  be  master  of 
his  subject.  In  general  he  is  perspicuous  and  intelligible,  but  the 
treatise  is  rather  historical  than  professional :    it  was  a  posthumous 

1  Written  between  1769  and  1772. 

-  Later  in  life,  as  is  well  known,  J.  Q.  Adams  overcame  this  disinclination  to 
early  rising,  and  became  at  last  a  victim  to  it.  December  31,  1828,  he  wrote : 
"  My  rising  hour  has  varied  from  quarter-past  four  to  seven  — the  average  being 
about  five.  After  making  my  fire,  1  have  been  constantly  writing  till  breakfast 
time,  between  nine  and  ten."  Memoirs,  vol.  viii.  p.  88.  See  also  ihid.,  vol.  vii. 
pp.  97,  165,  365 ;  etc. 

3  The  Sermons  of  Mr.  Yorick  ;  or.  Sermons  by  Laurence  Sterne.  Publication 
began  in  17G0 ;  had  passed  through  several  editions  before  1787. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  71 

work,  and  therefore  probably  mucli  more  imperfect  than  it  would  have 
been  had  the  author  himself  given  it  to  the  public.  The  style  is  rather 
harsh  and  inharmonious,  and  there  are  many  inaccuracies  even  of  gram- 
mar, which  are  probably  nothing  more  than  errors  of  an  uncorrected 
press.  Towusend  and  I  pass'd  the  evening  in  the  office  till  about  eight, 
after  which  I  went  in  and  play'd  with  Mr.  Parsons  at  back-gammon 
about  an  hour. 

18th.  Passed  the  day  at  the  oflice.  Townsend  and  Thompson  were 
there  in  the  evening. 

The  question,  what  am  I  to  do  in  this  world  recurs  to  me  very  fre- 
quently;  and  never  without  causing  great  anxiety,  and  a  depression  of 
spirits.  My  prospects  appear  darker  to  me  every  day,  and  I  am  obliged 
sometimes  to  drive  the  subject  from  my  mind  and  to  assume  some  more 
agreeable  train  of  thought.  I  do  not  wish  to  look  into  futurity ;  and 
were  the  leaves  of  fate  to  be  opened  before  me,  I  should  shrink  from 
the  perusal.  Fortune,  I  do  not  covet.  Honours,  I  begin  to  think  are 
not  worth  seeking,  and  as  for  "  the  bubble  reputation,"  though  deck'd 
with  all  the  splendors  of  the  rainbow,  yet  those  very  splendors  are  de- 
ceitful, and  it  seldom  fails  to  burst  from  the  weight  of  the  drop  which 
it  contains. 

19th.  I  spent  my  time  this  day  in  the  same  manner  that  I  did  the  two 
last.  I  came  home  to  my  lodgings  at  about  eight  in  the  evening,  and 
not  being  disposed  to  study  felt  quite  dull.  When  Dr.  Kilham  is  not 
at  home,  I  am  entirely  without  company,  for  my  landlady  is  in  fact  a 
good  woman,  but  merely  a  good  woman. 

20th.  The  cold  weather  appears  to  be  setting  in  seriously ;  and  in- 
deed it  is  high  time  that  it  should.  It  snow'd  some  part  of  the  day. 
Just  after  dusk,  I  walk'd  with  Thompson  and  Putnam  to  Little's  homo 
in  Newbury,  but  he  was  gone  to  attend  the  ordination  at  Byfield.^     We 

1  The  ordination  of  Rev.  Elijah  Parish  (Dartmouth,  1785),  pastor  of  the  church 
at  Byfield  for  thirty-eiglit  years ;  tlie  strong  Federalist  whose  election  sermon  of 
1810,  prepared  at  the  invitation  of  a  Federalist  Legislature  but  delivered  to  a 
"  Jacobin "  one,  was  quoted  for  its  bitter,  stinging  phraseology,  by  Mathew 
Carey  in  his  "  Olive  Branch  "  (1814),  and  by  Robert  Y.  Hayre,  of  South  Carolina, 
in  the  Senate  debate  with  Webster ;  instrumental  in  founding  Andover  Theologi- 
cal Seminary  and  the  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Missions  ; 
born  at  Lebanon,  Conn.,  in  17G2 ;  died  October  15,  1825 ;  a  "  Hopkinsian,"  lilie 
Dr.  Spring,  of  Newburyport.  See  J.  N.  Dummer,  Brief  History  of  Byfield  Con- 
gregational Church  ;  Appleton,  Sprague,  etc.  See  also  infra,  p.  76.  Dr.  Tucker's 
daughter,  in  her  journal  under  date  of  July  7,  1788,  shows  in  anotlier  aspect 
this  interesting  man  the  "vacancy"  of  whose  countenance  J.  Q.  Adams  noted. 
Riding  over  to  Byfield,  she  came  into  the  midst  of  a  revival;  or,  as  she  worded 
it,  "  Parson  Parish,  1  find,  is  much  celebrated  as  a  divine,  and  has  been  so  suc- 
cessful as  to  discompose  many  of  his  hearers,"  adding  a  distrust  of  the  move- 
ment with  the  "great  appearance  of  sanotity  and  this  wild  kind  of  enthusiasm." 
Thus  the  impression  made  by  Dr.  Parish  during  the  first  months  of  liis  ministry 
seems  to  have  been  characteristic  of  the  man  and  of  his  career ;  from  the  begin- 


72  DIAEY  OP  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

return'd,  and  the  lads  pass'd  the  evening  quite  sociably  with  me  till 
nine  o'clock.  Captain  Wyer  was  here  in  the  evening.  He  was,  he  s{\ys, 
an  enthusiast  for  liberty  in  1775,  but  finds  it  all  a  farce;  he  is  now 
no  less  an  enthusiast;  and  he  may  chance  to  find  his  present  object, 
which  is  different  enough  from  Liberty,  more  tragical  than  merry.^  I 
finished  this  day  with  Sullivan's  Lectures ;  and  am  not  displeased  to 
have  gone  through  it. 

21st.  I  read  through  Wright's  short  treatise  upon  the  feudal 
tenures.  I  found  nothing  in  it  but  what  I  had  befoi-e  read  upon  the 
subject  in  other  writers.  In  the  beginning  of  the  next  week,  I  shall 
take  up  Coke  upon  Littleton,  which  seems  to  be  the  great  magazine  for 
law  knowledge,  but  it  is  one  of  those  unlucky  folios  which  appear  so 
formidable  to  many  students  in  the  profession.  I  set  myself  down  for 
three  months  at  this  book. 

22d.  I  pass'd  the  day  as  usual  at  the  office ;  but  there  was  scarce  a 
Lain  an  hour  at  a  time  without  some  visitor  who  entered  into  conver- 
sation with  Mr.  Parsons,  and  prevented  us  from  paying  any  attention 
to  our  books.  This  is  too  frequently  the  case  and  much  of  our  time  is 
lost  in  that  manner.  Luckily  this  was  to  me  a  leisure  day,  and  I  only 
made  a  few  extracts  from  Bhickstone.  Little  pass'd  the  evening  with 
me.  Weather  quite  moderate.  I  should  wish,  in  order  to  give  some 
kind  of  variety  to  these  pages,  to  bring  in  the  aid  of  something 
more  than  a  mere  insipid  narrative  of  my  journeys  from  the  .otiice  to 
my  lodgings,  and  from  my  lodgings  to  the  office.  I  have  heretofore 
made  free  plunder  with  the  characters  of  persons  with  whom  I  had  any 
connections,  but  on  many  accounts  I  have  found  this  a  dangerous  prac- 
tice ;  for  as  I  cannot  keep  these  volumes  so  secret  as  I  should  wish  to, 
and  as  the  models  may  by  some  means  get  access  to  the  picture,  I  am 
obliged  either  to  forfeit  my  sincerity,  even  towards  myself,  or  to  run  the 
risque  of  making  enemies.  My  dis[)Osition  has  prompted  me  to  prefer 
the  latter  evil  and  I  have  sometimes  experienced  the  disadvantages  of 
committing  my  real  opinions  to  writing.  I  have  been  thinking  whether 
the  method  of  recording  observations,  without  exemplifying  characters, 
would  not  be  equally  agreeable  to  me  without  being  dangerous.  If  my 
observations  are  collected  from  a  concurrence  of  facts,  and  if  they  should 
be  upon  subjects  of  any  consequence,  I  might  in  that  manner  pluck  the 

ning  a  vigorous  personality,  a  rugged  man,  making  on  Alice  Tucker  almost  as 
unfavorable  an  impression  as  on  J.  Q.  Adams,  yet  wielding  a  great  influence  over 
the  people  to  whom  he  ministered,  and,  later,  in  his  denomination  and  political 
party.  At  a  later  date  (January  4,  1790)  Miss  Tucker  wrote:  "Afternoon 
Parson  Parish  call'd  and  drank  tea  with  us.  He  is  a  little,  sociable  man,  and 
quite  agreeable  in  conversation."  Manuscript  journal  of  Alice  Tucker  (1751- 
180d),  now  in  the  possession  of  the  daughters  of  Mr.  John  Tucker  Prince. 
1  See  supra,  p.  46, 


DIARY   OP  JOHN  QUINCY  ADAMS.  73 

rose,  without  pricking  my  finger  with  the  thorn,  I  believe  I  shall  en- 
deavour, though  not  immediately,  to  practise  upon  this  plan. 

23d.  I  went  this  forenoon  to  hear  Parson  Murray  ^  preach.  He  expa- 
tiated somewhat  largely  upon  the  seventh  commandment.  I  was  not 
very  much  pleased  with  him,  —  his  voice  is  clear  and  strong,  and  his 
delivery  agreeable  ;  but  I  have  heard  even  extempore  speakers  preach 
more  to  my  satisfaction.  His  arguments  against  a  crime  which  must 
meet  with  general  abhorrence  were  not,  I  think,  the  most  forcible  that 
might  have  been  brought,  and  he  extended  it  further  than  I  thought 
reasonable.  I  did  not  attend  meeting  in  the  afternoon.  We  finally 
have  got  a  violent  snowstorm,  which  begun  this  morning,  and  has  been 
acquiring  force  the  whole  day. 

[On  this  day  Mi-.  Adams  wrote  the  following  letter  to  his  mother :  — 

"  Dear  Madam,  —  ...  In  the  beginning  of  September  I  came  to 
this  town,  and  began  the  study  of  law  with  Mr.  Parsons.  I  could  not 
possibly  have  an  instructor  more  agreeable  then  this  gentleman.  His 
talents  are  great ;  his  application  has  been  indefatigable ;  and  his  pro- 
fessional knowledge  is  surpassed  by  no  gentleman  in  the  Common- 
wealth. The  study  itself  is  far  from  being  so  destitute  of  entertainment 
as  I  had  been  led  to  expect.  I  have  read  three  or  four  authors  with 
pleasure  as  well  as  improvement ;  and  the  imaginary  terrors  of  tedious- 
uess  and  disgust  have  disappeared  upon  the  first  approach.  But  in 
their  stead  other  fears  have  arisen  which  create  more  anxiety  in  my 
mind,  and  which  will  increase  rather  than  subside.  The  popular  odium 
which  has  been  excited  against  the  practitioners  in  this  Commonwealth 
prevails  to  so«great  a  degree  that  the  most  innocent  and  irreproachable 
life  cannot  guard  a  lawyer  against  the  hatred  of  his  fellow  citizens. 
The   very  despicable  writings   of   Honestus    were   just  calculated   to 

1  Rev.  John  Murray,  pastor  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  ;  born  May  22, 
1742,  in  Antrim,  Ireland  ;  educated  at  Edinburgh  University;  iu  May,  1765,  a  pas- 
tor at  Philadelphia ;  in  July,  1766,  at  Boothbaj',  Me. ;  had  a  career  as  an  extempore 
speaker  and  evangelist  like  that  of  Wliitefield  ;  delegate  from  the  Boothbay  region 
to  the  Provincial  Congress  of  Massachusetts  in  1775,  and  took  an  active  part  in 
its  proceedings;  was  so  vigorous  in  beiialf  of  the  American  cause  that  the  British 
Commodore  in  the  Maine  waters  in  1779  placed  a  reward  of  five  hundred  guineas 
on  his  head;  by  a  stirring  sermon  rallied  a  company  of  volunteers  in  Newbury- 
port ;  installed  there  June  4, 1781  ;  died  March  13, 1793 ;  was  esteemed  an  orator ; 
known  as  "  Damnation  "  Murray  to  distinguish  him  from  "  Salvation  "  Murray, 
who  was  then  preaching  in  Massachusetts  the  faith  of  the  Uuiversalists.  Jonathan 
Greenleaf  and  Captain  William  Coombs  were  elders  in  his  church;  among  the 
names  of  his  parishioners  are  to  be  found  Titcomb,  Knight,  Tufts,  etc.  Some  of 
the  neighboring  pastors,  especially  Dr.  Spring,  did  not  receive  him  into  cordial 
fellowship.  See  A.  G.  Vermilye,  Jleraoir  of  Eev.  John  Murray  in  INIaine 
Hist.  Soc.  Coll.,  vol.  vi.  pp.  155-170;  H.  C.  Hovey,  Origin  and  Annals  of 
"The  Old  South"  First  Presbyterian  Church,  pp.  37-42,  88,  199;  J.  J.  Currier, 
"  Ould  Newbury,"  p.  523;  etc. 

10 


74  DIARY  OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

kindle  a  flame  wliich  will  subsist  long  after  they  are  forgotten.  The 
author  after  being  hoisted  by  this  weak  instrument  into  the  Senate 
has  already  return'd  to  his  native  insignificancy,  and  under  the  new 
adopted  signature  of  Candidas  defends  a  good  cause  without  ability 
and  without  success.  But  the  poison  has  been  so  extensively  com- 
municated that  its  infection  will  not  easily  be  stopped.  A  thousand 
lies  in  addition  to  those  published  in  the  papers  have  been  spread  all 
over  the  country  to  prejudice  the  people  against  the  "order,"  as  it  has 
invidiously  been  called ;  and  as  a  free  people  will  not  descend  to  dis- 
guise their  sentiments,  the  gentlemen  of  the  profession  have  been 
treated  with  contemptuous  neglect  and  with  insulting  abuse.  Yet 
notwithstanding  all  this  the  profession  is  increasing  rapidly  in  numbers, 
and  the  little  business  to  be  done  is  divided  into  so  many  shares  that 
they  are  in  danger  of  starving  one  another.  When  I  consider  these 
disadvantages,  which  are  in  a  degree  peculiar  to  the  present  time,  and 
those  which  at  all  times  subsist,  when  I  reflect  that  with  good  abilities, 
great  application  and  a  favourable  fortune  are  requisite  to  acquire  that 
eminence  in  the  profession  which  can  ensure  a  decent  subsistence,  I  con- 
fess I  am  sometimes  almost  discouraged,  and  ready  to  wish  I  had 
engaged  in  some  other  line  of  life.  But  I  am  determined  not  to 
despond.  With  industry  and  frugality,  with  patience  and  perseverance 
it  will  be  very  hard  if  I  cannot  go  through  the  world  with  honour.  I 
am  most  resolutely  determined  not  to  spend  my  days  in  a  dull  tenor 
of  insipidity.  I  never  shall  be  enough  of  a  stoic  to  raise  myself  beyond 
the  reach  of  Fortune.  But  I  hope  I  shall  have  so  much  resolution  as 
shall  enable  me  to  receive  prosperity  without  growing  giddy  and  ex- 
travagant, or  adversity  without  faUiiig  into  despair. 

I  board  at  Mrs.  Leathers's  —  a  good  old  woman  ;  who  even  an  hun- 
dred years  ago  would  have  stood  in  no  danger  of  being  hang'd  for 
witchcraft.  She  is  however  civil  and  obliging,  and,  what  is  very  much 
in  her  favour,  uncommonly  silent  —  so  that  if  I  am  deprived  of  the 
charms,  I  am  also  free  from  the  impertinence  of  conversation.  There 
is  one  boarder  beside  myself.  A  Dr.  Kilham  (I  hope  the  name  will 
not  scare  you),  one  of  the  representatives  from  this  town,  a  very  worthy 
man;  and  a  man  of  sense  and  learning.  Was  it  not  for  him  I  should  be 
at  my  lodgings  as  solitary  as  an  hermit.  There  is  a  very  agreeable 
society  in  the  town ;   though  I  seldom  go  into  company. 

I  pass'd  two  or  three  days  at  Haverhill  about  a  month  ago,  and  had 
the  pleasure  of  finding  Mr.  Thaxter.  From  the  severest  censurer  of 
every  trifling  attentions  between  lovers,  he  became  as  fond  a  shepherd 
as  ever  was  celebrated  in  the  annals  of  Arcadia.  He  expects  some 
peculiar  animadversions  from  you,  for  his  desertion  of  principles  which 
he  formerly  boasted  were  so  deeply  rooted  in  his  mind.  But  it  is  the 
old  story  of  Benedick.     The  absurdity  is  not  in  abandoning  a  vain 


DIARY  OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  75 

ineffectual  resolution  ;  but  it  is  in  pretending  to  adopt  a  resolution 
which  every  day  may  be  rendered  futile. 

I  have  frequently  been  prevented  from  expatiating  in  my  letters 
upon  political  topics,  by  the  sterility  of  the  subject;  uncommon  fertility 
now  produces  the  same  effect.  I  can  only  say  in  general  terms  that 
parties  run  very  high,  and  that  we  are  most  probably  at  the  eve  of 
a  revolution.  Whether  it  will  be  effected  in  silence  and  without  a 
struggle,  or  whether  it  will  be  carried  at  the  point  of  the  sword  is  yet  a 
question.  The  newspapers  will  show  you  how  much  the  public  is 
engaged  in  the  discussion  of  the  new  continental  form  of  government, 
which  I  fear  will  be  adopted.  .  .  .] 

24th,  Began  upon  Coke-Littleton,  and  read  about  a  dozen  pages. 
Pass'd  about  an  hour  in  the  evening  with  Mr.  Parsons,  playing  back- 
gammon. .  .  . 

25th.  Christmas  day.  Parson  Bass  preached  a  sermon,  but  I  did  not 
go  to  hear  him.  I  dined  with  Townsend,  and  pass'd  the  afternoon 
there.  At  about  dusk,  I  took  a  long  walk  with  him,  and  then  returned 
to  my  own  lodgings.  The  Dr.  this  day  took  a  ride  out  of  town.  In 
the  evening  I  fell  to  speculating  upon  political  subjects.  I  regret  ex- 
ceedingly that  I  have  so  little  time  at  my  own  disposal.  A  thousand 
subjects  call  my  attention,  and  excite  my  curiosity.  Most  of  them  I  am 
obliged  to  pass  from  without  noticing  them  at  all ;  and  the  few  to  which 
I  can  afford  any  leisure,  only  lead  me  to  regret  that  I  cannot  go  deeper. 
The  tedious  study  of  a  profession,  which  requires  indefatigable  indus- 
try and  incessant  application,  is  alone  sufficient  employment.  But  the 
arts  and  sciences  in  general,  and  in  particular  the  liberal  arts,  must  not 
be  neglected.     I  suspect  I  shall  soon  drop  this  journal. 

27th.  St.  John's  Day.  An  entertainment  for  the  Society  of  Free- 
Masons.  In  consequence  of  Stacey's  exertions,  we  had  this  evening  a 
good  dance.  There  were  only  thirteen  gentlemen  and  fifteen  ladies. 
The  diversion  was  general,  and  the  company  spirited.  Upon  such  occa- 
sions there  is  almost  always  somebody  who  makes  peculiar  amusement 
for  the  rest  of  the  company.  A  Captain  Casey  was  this  evening  as 
singular  as  any  of  the  gentlemen.  As  a  Mason,  he  had  the  generosity 
of  his  heart  at  dinner  rather  than  the  reflections  of  prudence,  and  as 
this,  like  most  virtues,  increases  by  being  put  in  action,  he  had  not  laid 
any  illiberal  restraints  upon  himself  in  the  evening.  It  increased  ex- 
ceedingly his  activity,  and  after  all  the  company  had  done  dancing  he 
retained  vigour  to  walk  a  minuet  and  to  skip  in  reels.  In  all  this  there 
was  nothing  but  was  perfectly  innocent ;  yet  so  fond  are  the  sons  of 
men  to  remark  their  respective  foibles,  that  the  Captain  was  not  totally 
exempted  from  the  smiles  of  the  company.  This  was  the  most  particu- 
lar circumstance  that  took  place.     In  general  I  was  much  pleased.     It 


76  DIARY  OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

was  between  four  and  five  in  the  morning  before  we  broke  up.  Put- 
nam came  and  sat  an  hour  with  me  and  Little  in  garrulous  conversa- 
tion. A  little  after  the  clock  struck  five,  Putnam  went  home ;  and  I 
much  fatigued  retired  to  bed. 

28th.  We  rose  between  ten  and  eleven  in  the  forenoon.  Little 
took  a  breakfast  with  me;  after  which  I  went  to  the  office,  but  felt 
entirely  incapable  of  doing  anything  serious.  I  pass'd  the  time  there- 
fore till  dinner  in  idle  chat.  In  the  afternoon,  I  passed  an  hour  with  Dr. 
Kilham ;  and  again  repaired  to  the  office,  with  as  little  success  as  ever. 
In  the  evening,  all  the  gentlemen  who  were  last  night  at  the  dance 
were  at  Putnam's  lodgings.  We  drank  and  smoked  and  sang  there  till 
nine  o'clock ;  but,  notwithstanding  a  forced  appearance  of  hilarity  was 
kept  up,  there  was  in  fact  no  real  mirth.  All  were  fatigued  by  the  last 
night's  siege,  and  unable  to  bear  another,  such  as  the  inexhaustible 
spirits  of  Amory  would  have  relished.  At  nine  therefore  we  retired, 
and  not  long  after  I  got  home,  I  went  to  bed. 

29th.  Not  entirely  recovered  3'et  from  the  fatigue  of  Thursday  night ; 
but  could  in  some  measure  attend  to  reading.  Mr.  Parsous's  students 
all  dined  with  him.  Master  Moody, ^  from  Byfield,  with  a  son  of  Dart- 
mouth by  the  name  of  Parish  were  likewise  of  the  company.  Mr. 
Parish  has  to  perfection  the  appearance  and  manners  which  have  dis- 
tinguished all  the  young  gentlemen  from  that  seminary  with  whom  I 
have  had  any  acquaintance,  —  the  same  uncouthness  in  his  appearance, 
the  same  awkwardness  in  his  manners,  and,  really  I  am  not  illiberal  if  I 
add,  the  same  vacancy  in  his  countenance.  That  a  man  should  not  at 
the  same  time  make  a  scholar  and  a  fine  gentleman,  that  the  graces 
and  the  muses  should  refuse  to  reside  in  the  same  mansion,  is  what 
I  have  never  thought  strange ;  that  they  seldom  unite  is  at  once  my 
sorrow  and  my  consolation;   but  the  students  of  Dartmouth,  appear 

1  Master  Samuel  Moody  (H.  C.  1746),  the  genial  and  eccentric  preceptor  of 
Dumraer  Academy.  Born  April  18,  1726,  at  York ;  a  teacher  tliere  for  sixteen 
or  seventeen  years;  first  preceptor  of  Dummer  Academy  1702-1790;  a  bachelor; 
died  December,  1795,  at  Exeter,  N.  H.  Held  in  tlie  highest  and  most  affectionate 
esteem  by  pupils  such  as  President  Willard  and  Professor  Webber  of  Harvard, 
Theopliilus  Parsons  and  Rufus  King,  with  a  long  and  honorable  record  of  service 
over  a  flourishing  school,  his  best  days  were  in  the  {)ast.  The  son  of  "  Handker- 
chief Moody"  and  grandson  of  "  Faitliful  Moody,"  the  eccentricities  of  his 
character  and  intellect  were  becoming  so  pronounced  as  to  impair  his  usefulness 
and  compel  his  resignation.  Again  Miss  Tucker's  impression  is  in  accord  with 
that  of  J.  Q.  Adams,  for  a  j'ear  later,  Decembers,  1788,  she  calls  him  the  "  vocif- 
erous Master  Moody,"  and  speaks  of  "  his  high  sounding  volubility."  And  on 
May  9,  1790,  writes:  "Master  I\Ioody  spent  the  day  with  us  — how  he  em- 
barrasses one  by  his  gross  extravagant  compliments — certainly  he  does  not 
possess  any  true  politeness,  and  is  a  stranger  to  that  delicate  sensibility  wliich 
is  cautious  of  offending."  Manuscript  Journal  of  Alice  Tucker.  N.  Cieaveland, 
The  First  Century  of  Dummer  Academy,  pp.  xiii-xvii,  19-33.     See  infra,  p.  85. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  77 

determined  to  raise  no  rivalship  between  these  seta  of  sisters,  and  there- 
fore discard  them  all.  Mr.  Moody  was  extremely  full  of  high  flown 
compliments  ;  the  grossest,  the  most  fulsome  flattery  was  incessantly  in 
bis  mouth.  Every  virtue  and  every  accomplishment  he  lavished  away 
upon  the  company,  with  so  little  consideration  that  he  seemed  to  forget 
that  modesty  was  in  the  list.  He  went  off  however  very  soon  after 
dinner.  By  G.  Bradbury,^  I  received  a  couple  of  letters  from  Cam- 
bridge which  gave  me  no  agreeable  news.  Bradbury  was  with  me  in 
the  evening ;  he  relieved  me  in  some  measure  from  my  fears.  The 
Colleges,  it  seems,  in  the  course  of  the  last  quarter  have  been  in  great 
confusion,  and  the  students  are  much  irritated. 

30th.  Attending  meeting  tlie  whole  day  at  Mr.  Carey's.  Dined  at 
Mr.  Hooper's  ^  in  company  with  Mr.  Symmes,  who  return 'd  in  the  after- 
noon to  Andover.  In  the  evening  I  walk'd  with  Dr.  Kilham  to"Mr. 
Carter's ;  found  nobody  at  home.  We  then  went  and  pass'd  the 
evening  with  Mrs.  Emery.  The  conversation  was  agreeable,  tho'  not 
extremely  interesting. 

31st.  In  the  evening  I  went  with  Townsend  to  see  Miss  Cazneau, 
and  to  fulfill  a  promise  of  playing  on  the  flute  for  her,  which  I  made 
some  weeks  ago,  and  renew'd  last  Thursday.  The  character  of  Miss  C. 
I  propose  to  delineate  at  a  future  period,  if  I  should  continue  to  draw 
any.^  At  eight  I  left  her  and  pass'd  the  remainder  of  the  evening  at 
Mrs.  Hooper's. 

The  night  which  puts  a  period  to  the  revolving  year  always  presents 
to  my  mind  a  crowd  of  the  most  serious  reflections.  But  none  are 
more  important  than  those  upon  the  shortness  of  human  life.  A 
twentieth  part  of  the  days  of  man  has  nearly  elapsed  since  I  began  this 
journal ;  yet  how  uninteresting  the  events !  how  much  of  that  period 
lost !  how  much  mis-spent  I  but  revert  the  question :  how  much  em- 
ployed to  make  me  wiser,  better  and  more  useful?  Ah  !  how  shall  I 
answer  ? 

1  George  Bradbury  (H.  C.  1789),  son  of  Theophilus  Bradbury,  born  in  Port- 
land October  10,  1770;  a  lawyer  in  Portland;  a  member  of  the  Massachusetts 
Legislature  1802  (from  Newburyport),  1806-1810,  1811-1812  (from  Portland) ; 
a  Ptepresentative  in  Congress  1813-1817  ;  etc.;  died  November  17,  1823.  VV.  B. 
Lapham,  Bradbury  Memorial,  pp.  89,  118,  119. 

2  See  infra,  p.  103. 

3  See  supra,  p.  67.  February  24,  1789,  Alice  Tucker  wrote  :  "  Miss  Cazneau 
came  from  town  and  took  tea  with  me ;  lively  conversation  ;  she  is  a  young 
lady  of  humour,  and  very  volatile " ;  and  again,  December  9  :  "  The  lively 
laughing  Miss  Cazneau  came  in  the  afternoon  and  took  tea  with  us."  It  is 
evident,  from  an  entry  in  this  journal  of  March  24,  1789,  that  this  family  had 
known  days  of  greater  prosperity,  but  were  then  reduced  "  to  indigence."  Manu- 
script journal  of  Alice  Tucker. 


78  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QTJINCY   ADAMS. 

Tuesday,  January  1st,  1788. 

Pass'd  the  day  and  evening  at  the  office.  Read  at  my  own  lodgings 
till  one  o'clock  in  the  morning.  I  feel  every  day  a  greater  disposition  to 
drop  this  nonsense.  It  takes  up  a  great  deal  of  my  time ;  and,  as  it  is 
incessantly  calling  upon  me,  I  can  never  have  any  respite.  In  the  ex- 
treme cold  of  winter  I  have  no  convenience  for  writing,  and  was  it  not 
for  the  pleasure  of  complaining  to  myself,  I  believe  I  should  have  done 
long  ago.  I  often  get  in  arrears,  and  then  I  have  as  much  time  to  rec- 
ollect the  circumstances  of  one  day,  as  at  other  times  I  have  to  write 
for  four.  These  inconveniences  however  are  most  prevalent  in  the 
severity  of  the  winter  season.  As  I  have  got  so  far  through  this, 
and  more  particularly  as  I  have  now  begun  the  year,  I  will  make 
an  effort  to  carry  it  on  for  one  more  revolution  of  the  sun ;  and,  if  I 
then  feel  as  averse  to  writing  as  at  present,  I  will  e'en  stop,  at  least 
while  the  events  in  which  I  am  conceru'd  are  as  trivial  as  they  are  at 
present.  One  consideration  upon  this  subject,  at  least,  affords  me  some 
satisfaction :  it  is,  that  when  I  look  back  in  these  volumes,  and  peruse 
the  temporary  productions  of  my  pen,  I  am  at  least  able  to  say  at  the 
close  of  the  day,  that  day  I  did  something. 

2d.  In  the  beginning  of  the  evening  Putnam  called  at  our  office, 
and  invited  me  to  go  with  him  and  pass  a  couple  of  hours  at  Mr. 
Frazier's ;  ^  after  debating  with  myself  some  time  upon  the  subject,  I 
determined  finally  to  go.  We  found  there  a  number  of  young  gentle- 
men and  ladies.  After  we  had  sat  a  little  while  the  infallible  request 
to  sing  made  its  appearance.  One  could  not  sing,  and  another  could 
not  sing,  and  a  total  incapacity  to  sing  was  declared  all  round  the 
room.  If  upon  such  occasions  every  one  would  adhere  to  his  first 
assertion  it  would  be  very  agreeable,  at  least  to  me ;  for  in  these  mixt 
companies,  when  the  musical  powers  are  finally  exerted,  the  only  rec- 
ompense for  the  intolerable  tediousness  of  urging  generally  is  a  few 
very  insipid  songs,  sung  in  a  very  insipid  manner.  But  the  misfortune 
is  that  some  one  always  relents,  and  by  singing  furnishes  the  only 
materials  for  a  conversation  which  consists  in  intreaties  for  further 
gratifications  of  the  same  kind.  When  we  had  gone  through  this 
ceremony  and  had  grown  weary  of  it,  another  equally  stupid  suc- 
ceeded. It  was  playing  pawns :  a  number  of  pledges  were  given  all 
round,  and  kissing  was  the  only  condition  upon  which  they  were  re- 
deem'd  Ah !  what  kissing !  'tis  a  profanation  of  one  of  the  most 
endearing  demonstrations  of  Love.     A  kiss  unless  warm'd  by  sentiment 

1  Presumably  Moses  Frazier,  a  member  of  the  Committee  of  Safety  of  Sep- 
tember 23, 1774;  selectman  1778-1781, 178G,  town  treasurer  1782;  representative 
in  the  Legislature  1777,  1778, 1781.  Hurd,  Hist,  of  Essex  County,  pp.  1738-1740, 
1744. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  79 

and  enlivened  by  affection  may  just  as  well  be  given  to  the  air  as  to 
the  most  beautiful  or  the  most  accomplished  object  in  the  Universe. 
After  going  through  this  likewise,  as  if  the  Pope  had  done  us  any  injury, 
nothing  would  do  but  we  must  break  his  neck.  It  is  the  fate  of  the 
poor  representative  of  St.  Peter  to  be  abused  at  this  day.  But  we 
were  peculiarly  cruel,  for  we  persecuted  him  without  any  kind  of  ad- 
vantage to  ourselves.  Thus  we  pass'd  the  heavy  hours  till  about  ten 
o'clock,  when  we  all  retired.  I  did  intend  to  mention  the  young  ladies 
that  were  present  and  give  my  sentiments  upon  their  persons  and 
manners  ;  but  this  day  has  already  usurp'd  more  than  its  proportion  of 
the  volume,  and  I  will  take  some  other  opportunity  for  delineating. 
For  the  present  I  will  quit  the  pen. 

od.  Pass'd  the  evening  at  Little's  in  Newbury.  A  Mr.  Coffin,^  who 
graduated  two  years  ago  at  Harvard,  was  there.  "We  spent  our  time  in 
sociable  chat  and  in  singing ;  not  such  unmeaning,  insignificant  songa 
as  those  with  which  we  killed  our  time  last  evening,  but  good,  jovial, 
expressive  songs  such  as  we  sang  at  College,  "  when  mirth  and  jollity 
prevail'd."  One  evening  of  this  kind  gives  me  more  real  satisfaction 
than  fifty  pass'd  in  a  company  of  girls.     (I  beg  their  pardon.) 

4th.  Nothing,  It  would  be  a  fine  theme  to  expatiate  upon.  It 
has  been  well  expatiated  on.  When  I  look  around  me  and  see  the 
vices,  the  follies,  the  errors  of  my  fellow  creatures,  when  I  look  into 
myself  and  enquire  into  the  springs  and  motives  of  my  actions,  when  1 
look  forward  and  ask  what  am  I  to  do,  what  am  I  to  expect,  an  invol- 
untary sigh  acknowledges  that  nothing  is  the  only  answer.  In  the 
physical  world,  what  are  sensual  gratifications,  what  is  the  earth,  and 
all  it  contains,  what  is  life  itself?  —  nothing.  In  the  moral  world, 
what  is  honour,  what  is  honesty,  what  is  religion?  —  nothing.  In  the 
political  world,  what  is  liberty,  what  is  patriotism,  what  is  power  and 
grandeur?  —  nothing.  The  universe  is  an  atom,  and  its  creator  is  all 
in  all.  Of  him,  except  that  he  exists,  we  know  nothing,  and  conse- 
quently our  knowledge  is  nothing.  Perhaps  the  greatest  truth  of  all 
is,  that  for  this  half  hour  I  have  been  doing  nothing. 

5th.  I  have  this  week  been  reading  Cecilia,^  a  novel  of  some  reputa- 
tion ;  it  was  written  by  a  lady,  and  does  not  exhibit  that  knowledge  of 
human  nature,  which  is  the  greatest  excellency,  perhaps,  of  novels. 
Some  of  the  characters,  however,  are  well  drawn :  they  are  generally 
exaggerated,  and  appear  rather  too  strongly  marked  for  perfect  imitations 
of  nature.     The  characters  of  Miss  Larolles  and  of  Meadows  appear  to 

1  Charles  Coffin  (H.  C.  1786),  born  in  Newbury  September  4, 1765;  a  teacher 
and  physician  in  Portsmouth,  N.  H.,  and  afterwards  at  Beaufort,  S.  C;  died 
September,  1820.    J.  J.  Currier,  Hist,  of  Newbury,  p.  669. 

2  Miss  Burney's  "Cecilia,"  in  five  volumes,  had  then  been  published  six 
years.    In  1793  she  married  General  D'Arblay. 


80  DIAEY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

me  original  and  true,  that  of  Lady  Pemberton  is  pleasing,  but  merely  an 
imitation.  The  story  in  general  is  well  told  and  the  interest  is  pre- 
served; but  in  many  places  probability  is  not  suihciently  consulted,  and 
the  repetitions  of  the  mistakes  at  Belfield's  lodgings  become  tedious 
and  wearisome ;  the  catastrophe  is  not  just  as  I  should  wish  it,  yet 
perhaps  it  is  more  judicious  than  it  would  have  been  to  have  preserved 
her  fortune.  If  the  book  was  made  shorter  by  two  volumes,  I  think  it 
would  be  much  better  than  it  is ;  but  even  now  it  is  infinitely  superior 
to  the  common  herd  of  novels,  which  are  mere  nusances  to  Literature. 
I  passed  the  evening  quite  in  a  solitary  way  at  my  own  lodgings. 
The  weather  has  this  week  been  extremely  cold. 

6th.  Heard  Mr.  Carey  preach  two  sermons  this  day;  but  the 
weather  was  very  cold.  In  the  afternoon  the  Parson  was  extremely 
vehement ;  in  an  occasional  discourse  upon  the  renewal  of  the  year,  he 
complained  exceedingly  that  the  language  of  the  people  was  "  the  time 
is  not  come,"  and,  with  all  his  powers  of  eloquence  and  of  reasoning,  he 
exerted  to  prove  that  the  time  is  come.  He  was  rather  too  violent :  his 
zeal  was  so  animated  that  he  almost  had  the  appearance  of  being  vexed 
and  chagrined.  But  he  said  he  was  not  aiming  at  popularity. 
Passed  the  evening  with  Dr.  Kilham  at  Mr.  Carter's,  where  we  had  a 
whole  magazine  of  antiquity.  Miss  Sally  Jenkins  was  there.  I  was 
pleased  with  her  manners.  She  is  of  the  middling  female  size  and 
has  a  fine  form,  the  features  of  her  face  are  regular,  and  were  not  the 
nose  too  much  inclined  to  the  aquiline,  would  be  very  handsome. 
Twenty  two,  I  should  think  her  age  ;  but  perhaps  she  is  two  or  three 
years  younger.  She  conversed  not  much,  and  indeed  in  the  state  of 
female  education  here  there  ai'e  very  few  young  ladies  who  talk  and  yet 
preserve  our  admiration.  For  my  own  part,  the  most  difficult  task  that 
could  be  assigned  me  would  be  to  carry  on  a  conversation  with  one  of 
our  fine  ladies  ;  the  topics  upon  which  they  are  able  to  be  fluent  are 
80  total  1;  different  from  any  of  those  with  which  I  have  ever  been  con- 
versant, that  I  feel  the  same  embarassment  that  I  should  with  one 
whose  language  I  should  be  wholly  unacquainted  with.  This  is  not 
meant  however  to  apply  to  Miss  Jenkins,  who  is,  I  hope,  of  a  different 
cast;  perhaps  I  shall  discover  on  a  better  acquaintance  attractions  in 
her  besides  those  of  person,  and  they  will  appear  the  more  amiable  as 
they  are  the  more  rare. 

7th.  ...  At  eight  o'clock  I  left  the  oflice,  and  went  to  Dr. 
Swett's,  where  I  found  Little  very  agreeably  situated.  He  had  been 
writing  part  of  a  letter  to  Freeman.  I  join'd  with  him,  and  scribbled 
about  half  a  page  upon  the  subject  of  Miss  Cazneau.  I  know  not  but  I 
should  have  done  best  to  adopt  the  prudent  style  of  panegyric  ;  but  what 
is  done  cannot  be  helped,  and  I  must  run  my  chance  of  incurring  the 
tremendous  resentment  of  an  offended  female.     If  she  should  discover 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QULNCY  ADAMS.  81 

what  I  have  written,  my  only  resource  would  be  to  flatter  her.  This  I 
believe  would  be  an  infallible  recipe  for  appeasing  her.  While  I  was 
sitting  with  Little,  the  sexton  came  in.  "  You  mentioned  a  matter  to 
me  the  other  day,"  said  he;  "and  I  met  with  one  yesterday  ;  all  entire, 
lias  been  there  but  a  few  years.  The  flesh  has  sunk  away  not  much ; 
rather  dirty,  as  the  clods  fell  on  him  as  I  was  digging ;  but  it's  easy  to 
wash  that  away.  If  you  want  one  now,  you  may  have  him  early  to- 
morrow morning."  Little  told  him  such  an  one  would  not  answer  his 
purpose,  not  being  fresh  enough.  I  bless'd  myself  for  not  being  a 
student  in  physic,  and  for  being  exempted  from  an  application  to  any 
art  by  means  against  which  humanity  revolts.  How  much  is  an 
honest  and  a  humane  physician  to  be  respected  and  esteemed !  no  man 
certainly  can  render  hfmself  useful  to  his  fellow  creatures  in  a 
manner  more  painful  and  disgusting  to  himself,  and  few  men  have  a 
poorer  jDfospect  of  obtaining  the  reward  of  their  labours ;  in  this 
country  especially.  I  sat  about  an  hour  with  Little,  after  which  I 
retired  to   my  own  lodgiugs. 

8th.  It  snow'd  all  the  forenoon  ;  but,  as  the  weather  kept  continually 
moderating,  in  the  afternoon  it  began  to  rain,  and  before  the  weather 
cleared  up  the  snow  was  almost  gone.  I  went  with  Townsend,  and 
drank  coffee  at  Mr.  Thompson's.  His  son  goes  to  Boston  to-morrow. 
I  gave  him  my  letter  for  Cranch.  After  we  went  from  there,  we  called 
in  at  Putnam's  lodgings,  and  found  Captain  Noyes  there.  Mr.  Town- 
send  soon  went  away.  I  sat  there  till  after  nine  o'clock,  and  heard 
the  doleful  story  of  the  clock  upon  Mr.  Murray's  meeting  house,^  which 
the  other  night  kept  striking  without  ceasing  almost  the  whole  night, 
and  how  it  is  an  iudisi^utable  omen,  foreboding  the  death  of  the  Parson, 
who  is  very  sick.  Superstition  and  bigotry  will  ever  be  iuseperable 
companions,  and  they  are  always  the  tyrants  of  a  mean  and  contracted 
mind. 

9th.  This  day  our  State  Convention  is  to  meet  in  Boston  for  the  pur- 
pose of  assenting  to  and  ratifying  the  Federal  Constitution.  The  mem- 
bers from  this  town  went  for  Boston  yesterday,  except  Mr.  Parsons, 
who  will  go  to-morrow.  The  conjectures  concerning  the  issue  of  their 
debates  are  different,  according  to  the  dispositions  of  the  speculators. 
Some  think  there  will  be  a  great  majority  for  adopting  the  Constitu- 
tion, while  others  hope  the  opposite  party  will  greatly  preponderate. 
In  the  evening  I  play'd  with  Mr.  Parsons  at  back-gammon,  and  was 
beat  by  him.  After  leaving  the  office,  I  pass'd  the  remainder  of  the 
evening  with  Townsend  at  Mrs.  Hooper's. 

1  This  clock  had  a  hexagonal  dial  with  a  single  arrow  extending  across  it  to 
mark  the  hours  —  minutes  in  those  slow  days  not  being  worth  counting.  H.  C. 
Hovey,  Origin  and  Annals  of  "  The  Old  South,"  First  Presbyterian  Church, 
pp.  191,  192. 

11 


82  DIARY  OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

10th.  Between  eleven  and  twelve  Mr.  Parsons  went  for  Boston.  .  .  . 
I  went  this  evening  to  Dr.  Swett's  with  the  intention  to  pass  the  even- 
ing there,  but  neither  the  Doctor  nor  his  lady  were  at  home.  I  called 
upon  Putnam,  and  would  have  gone  with  him  to  Mr.  Bradbury's,  but 
they  were  all  out.  I  met  Little  in  the  street ;  he  came  home  with  me, 
and  sat  half  an  hour.  The  Convention  met  at  Boston  yesterday,  about 
three  hundred  members  present.  They  chose  Mr.  Hancock  President, 
and,  as  his  infirmities  are  such  as  will  probably  prevent  him  frequently 
from  attending,  Judge  Gushing  was  chosen  Vice-President.  But  they 
have  not  yet  proceeded  to  business  of  any  consequence,  nor  does  it  ap- 
pear which  party  is  most  likely  to  prevail.  From  which  we  may  per- 
haps infer  that  in  either  case  the  majority  will  be  small. 

12th.  Saturday  evening  I  was,  as  usual,  all  the  evening  at  my  own 
lodgings.  I  spent  my  time  in  reading  Gibbon's  Roman  history,  second 
volume,  and  now  at  twelve  at  night,  upon  compulsion,  I  am  to  say 
something  for  myself.  And  I  know  nothing  better  than  to  testify  that  at 
Mr.  Parsous's  office  I  have  lost  a  great  part  of  this  week  by  conversing 
with  him  and  with  Townsend.  Mr.  P.  is  now  gone  to  Boston,  and  I 
hope  to  God  I  shall  not  go  on  in  this  way  squandering  week  after  week, 
till  at  the  end  of  three  years  I  shall  go  out  of  the  office  as  ignorant  as  I 
entered  it.  I  cannot,  must  not,  be  so  negligent.  All  my  hopes  of  going 
through  the  world  in  any  other  than  the  most  contemptible  manner  de- 
pend upon  my  own  exertions,  and  if  I  continue  thus  trifling  away  my 
time,  I  shall  become  an  object  of  charity  or  at  least  of  pity.  God  of 
Heaven  !  if  those  are  the  only  terms  upon  which  life  can  be  granted  to 
me,  oh  !  take  me  from  this  world  before  I  curse  the  day  of  my  birth. 
Or  rather,  give  me  resolution  to  pursue  my  duty  with  diligence  and  ap- 
plication, that  if  my  fellow  creatures  should  neglect  and  despise  me,  at 
least  I  may  be  conscious  of  not  deserving  their  contempt. 

13th.  This  morning  Townsend  called  on  me,  and  invited  me  to  go 
and  hear  Parson  Tucker.  We  met  Little  in  the  street,  who  turn'd 
about,  and  walk'd  that  way  with  us.  When  we  got  to  the  meeting 
house  we  found  there  was  to  be  no  service  there  in  the  forenoon,  and 
as  it  was  then  too  late  to  go  any  where  else  we  turn'd  back  and  went 
home.  Dined  with  Dr.  Kilham  at  Dr.  Swett's,  and  Little  dined  with 
us.  We  spent  the  afternoon  and  drank  tea  there.  Mrs.  Swett  is  hand- 
some, and,  like  most  of  our  ladies,  is  perfectly  acquainted  with  the 
various  forms  of  propriety  in  company  which  have  been  established 
here.  She  has  too  much  good  breeding  to  know  any  thing  upon  specu- 
lative subjects,  and  she  has  a  proper  aversion  to  politics.  She  has,  how- 
ever, I  believe,  a  good  understanding,  and  is  infinitely  superior  to  many 
of  our  female  beauties  who  flutter  in  all  the  pride  of  variegated  col- 
ours.    After  I  return'd  home,  Thompson  called  and  delivered  me  a 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  83 

letter  from  "W.  Cranch.  I  went  with  the  Dr.  to  see  Mr.  Jackson,'  but 
he  was  not  at  home,  and  we  called  in  at  Mrs.  Emery's.^  This  lady 
and  her  daughter  converse  more  to  my  satisfaction  than  the  generality 
of  my  female  acquaintance.  In  their  company  my  time  passes  away 
fast ;  and  I  am  not  often  able  to  say  as  much. 

14th.  .  .  .  This  evening  I  went  with  Townsend  in  the  first  place 
to  Mr.  Atkins's  ;  this  too  is  an  house  where  I  always  visit  with  pleas- 
ure, as  I  am  always  sure  to  meet  with  good  sense  and  sociability. 
From  thence  we  went  to  Mr.  J.  Tracey's,  where  we  found  three  ladies, 
all  drest  in  the  deepest  mourning,  and  Captn.  Farris,^  who  lately  lost  hia 
wife.  Mrs.  Tracey  is  much  such  a  lady  as  Mrs.  Swett,  though  there  are 
a  few  distinguishing  characteristics.  Her  husband  is  a  singularity.  But 
he  is  a  justice  of  the  peace  and  deputy  adjutant  general  of  the  militia  ; 
and  with  equal  importance  and  dignity  he  wields  the  scales  of  justice 
and  the  sword  of  Bellona.  He  frequently  tells  of  his  judicial  perform- 
ances, and  takes  pleasure  in  boasting  that  to  do  his  duty  he  must  see 
every  man  in  the  county  once  a  year.  But  he  is  friendly  and  hos- 
pitable, and  indeed,  except  when  mounted  on  one  of  his  two  hobby- 
horses, a  very  good  companion. 

15th.  After  passing  the  day  as  usual  at  the  ofSce,  Townsend  came, 
spent  the  evening,  and  supp'd  with  me.  The  weather  for  these  three 
or  four  days  past  has  been  excessive  cold ;  but  has  moderated  greatly 

1  Presumably  Jonathan  Jackson  (H.  C.  1761),  son  of  Edward  Jackson,  of  Bos- 
ton, and  Dorothy  Quincy,  of  Braintree ;  born  in  Boston  June,  1743 ;  classmate  of 
Stephen  Hooper,  Colonel  Edward  Wigglesworth,  Rev.  Thomas  Gary,  of  New- 
buryport,  and  Professor  Samuel  Williams,  of  Cambridge;  intimate  friend  of  John 
Lowell  (H.  C.  1760)  ;  began  his  business  life  as  a  clerk  in  the  ofBce  of  Captain 
Patrick  Tracy,  of  Newburyport ;  married,  as  a  second  wife,  in  1772,  Tracy's  daugh- 
ter, Hannah.  In  1771  Jackson  and  Lowell  bought  land  on  High  Street  and 
built  companion  houses,  —  Jackson's  being  known  later  as  the  "  Timothy  Dexter" 
house.  Jackson  was  a  member  of  the  Committee  of  Safety  in  1774  ;  a  repre- 
sentative to  the  Provincial  Congress  at  Watertown  ;  a  delegate  to  the  Continental 
Congress  1781,  1782;  moved  to  Boston  in  May,  1785;  marched  under  General 
Lincoln  to  suppress  Shays's  Rebellion  in  1786 ;  soon  after  that  returned  to  New- 
buryport; in  1789  was  United  States  marshal  for  the  district  of  Massachusetts 
and  was  living  in  one  half  of  what  is  now  the  Public  Library  Building;  removed 
to  Boston  again  in  1795 ;  was  treasurer  of  Massachusetts  five  years  and  of  Harvard 
College  three  years;  died  March  5,  1810.  J.  J.  Currier,  "Ould  Newbury," 
pp.  564-569,  —  a  portrait  of  Jackson  painted  about  1784  is  reproduced  there. 

2  Mrs.  Margaret  Gookin  Emery,  daughter  of  Rev.  Nathaniel  Gookin,  of  North- 
wood,  N.  H.,  wife  of  John  Emery;  born  August  11,  1745;  died  August  12,  1788; 
mother  of  Hannah  Emery ;  see  supra,  p.  45. 

3  Presumably  William  Farris,  born  in  Belfast,  Ireland,  in  1753;  came  to 
America  when  twelve  years  of  age;  joined  the  expedition  against  Quebec;  served 
on  the  sea  first  as  midshipman  and  later  as  commander  of  a  privateer;  sufiered 
imprisonment  several  times ;  became  after  the  war  a  merchant  in  Newbury- 
port; was  a  Representative  in  the  Legislature  1827-1833;  married  Fanny  Jen- 
kins ;  died  in  1837.  E.  V.  Smith,  Hist,  of  Newburyport,  pp.  369,  370 ;  Hard,  Hist, 
of  Essex  County,  p.  1741. 


84  DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

this  evening.  After  supper  I  amused  myself  an  hour  or  two  with 
writing  ;  and  I  have  been  reading  two  or  three  of  Shakespear's  his- 
torical plays.  I  believe  I  should  improve  my  reading  to  greater  advan- 
tage, if  I  confined  myself  to  one  book  at  a  time ;  but  I  never  can.  If 
a  book  does  not  interest  me  exceedingly  it  is  a  task  to  me  to  go  through 
it ;  and  I  fear  for  this  reason,  I  shall  never  get  through  Gibbon.  In- 
dolence, indolence,  I  fear,  will  be  my  ruin. 

16th.  It  snow'd  all  the  forenoon ;  but  the  weather  continued  moder- 
ating, and  in  the  afternoon  a  steady  rain  took  place  of  the  snow  ;  and 
when  I  came  this  evening  from  the  office,  the  ground  was  covered  all 
the  way  with  one  continual  glare  of  ice.  It  was  dangerous  walking, 
and  I  came  as  much  as  half  the  way  without  lifting  my  feet.  I  spent 
the  evening  at  home,  writing  to  make  good  the  time  which  I  have 
lately  lost ;  but  I  accomplished  my  purpose  only  in  part.  It  may  be 
observed  that  I  say  of  late  little  but  of  what  I  do  in  the  evening ;  and 
the  reason  is,  that  the  only  varieties  of  any  kind  that  take  place  are  in 
that  part  of  the  day.  At  about  nine  in  the  morning  I  regularly  go  to 
the  office,  and  when  I  do  not  lose  my  time  in  chat  with  Amory  or 
Townsend,  I  take  up  my  Lord  Coke,  and  blunder  along  a  few  pages 
with  him.  At  two  I  return  to  dinner  ;  at  three  again  attend  at  the  office, 
and  again  consult  my  old  author.  There  I  remain  till  dark,  and  as  Mr. 
Parsons  for  special  reasons,  to  him  best  known,  objects  to  our  having  a 
fire  in  the  office  in  the  evening  while  he  is  absent,  as  soon  as  day-light 
begins  to  fail  we  put  up  our  books,  and  then  employ  the  remainder  of 
the  day  as  best  suits  our  convenience  and  the  feelings  of  the  moment. 
I  go  but  little  into  company,  and  yet  I  am  not  industrious.  I  am  recluse, 
without  being  studious;  and  I  find  myself  equally  deprived  of  the  pleas- 
ures of  society,  and  of  the  sweet  communion  with  the  mighty  dead.  I 
am  no  stranger  to  the  midnight  lamp ;  yet  I  observe  not  that  I  make  a 
rapid  progress  in  any  laudable  pursuit.  I  begin  seriously  to  doubt  of 
the  goodness  of  my  understanding,  and  am  not  without  my  fears  that 
as  I  increase  in  years  the  dulness  of  my  apprehension  likewise  in- 
creases.    But  we  are  all  mortal. 

17th.  Putnam  called  at  our  office  this  forenoon,  and  return'd  Sulli- 
van's Lectures,  which  he  borrowed  about  a  fortnight  ago.  I  pass'd  the 
evening  till  nine  with  Little  and  Putnam  at  Thompson's.  We  con- 
vers'd  upon  tlie  subject  of  originality.  Thompson  opposed  my  sentiments 
upon  that  head,  though  I  believe  he  does  not  differ  very  widely  from 
me.  I  told  him  I  was  fond  of  novelty  in  characters,  and  was  even 
pleased  with  excentriclty  if  it  was  not  affected.  I  cannot  bear  your 
people  who  have  no  characters  at  all.  And  yet  I  could  name  many 
young  gentlemen,  who,  being  merely  blest  by  nature  with  a  good 
memory,  and  by  art  with  diligence  and  application,  bustle  through  the 
world,  and  even  find  people  who  will  call  them  men  of  genius.  .  .  . 


DIARY  OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  85 

18th.  This  afternoon  I  wrote  a  couple  of  letters  to  send  by  Mr. 
Atkins,  who  goes  to  Boston  to-morrow.  One  for  N.  Freeman,  and  the 
other  from  [for  ?]  W"  Cranch ;  and  as  I  could  not  finish  before  dark 
I  ventured  to  stay  in  the  ofiice  till  seven  o'clock.  I  then  went  with 
Townsend  to  Mr.  Atkins's,  to  give  him  the  letters.  Miss  Dashwood 
was  there,  a  young  lady  from  Boston.  She  speaks  thick  and  quick, 
which  is  at  present  all  I  have  to  say  of  her,  except  that  by  candle-light 
she  looks  handsome.  I  came  home ;  and  then  went  with  the  Doctor  to 
Mrs.  Emery's.  There  we  found  Mrs.  Jackson  and  Miss  Fletcher.* 
Mrs.  Jackson  looks  better  than  I  ever  saw  her,  and  was  in  high  spirits. 
She  talk'd  almost  all  the  time,  and  would  have  talk'd  well,  had  she  not 
appeared  rather  too  fond,  in  repeating  some  gentleman's  speeches,  to 
render  every  word,  even  those  which  are  most  superfluous,  words  which 
if  used  before  women,  even  by  a  man,  at  least  argue  ill-breeding,  but 
which  the  lips  of  every  woman  ought  to  be  ignorant  of  pronouncing. 
Miss  Fletcher  sat  two  hours,  and  scarcely  opened  her  mouth.  The 
poor  girl  is  in  love,  and  when  her  friend  is  absent  she  can  utter  nothing 
but  sighs.  This  evening,  it  is  true,  she  had  no  chance  to  speak,  but  she 
was  not  only  silent  but  absent.  She  did  not  appear  to  enjoy  the 
conversation,  and  all  Mrs.  Jackson's  wit  could  scarcely  soften  her 
features  to  a  smile.  After  they  were  gone,  we  sat  there  about 
half  an  hour  in  chat  with  Miss  Emery.  She  is  Thompson's  favorite, 
and  in  this  as  in  many  other  instances  he  shows  the  goodness  of  his 
taste. 

19th.  At  home  all  the  evening.  Master  Moody  called  to  see  me; 
*' Don't  you  think,  said  he,  that  I  am  very  condescending  thus  to  come  and 
visit  you  ?  "  It  might  be  very  true,  considering  the  dignity  which  his  years 
have  given  him,  but  the  address  was  very  much  that  of  a  schoolmaster, 
whose  habits  of  commanding  give  him  a  prescriptive  title  to  importance. 
He  sat  with  me  about  an  hour,  and  then  departed.  I  have  been  more 
attentive  to  studies  this  week  than  I  was  the  last.  I  have  made  con- 
siderable progress  in  my  folio,  and  have  got  some  insight  into  one  or 
two  particulars  which  had  hitherto  been  involv'd  in  intricacy  and  ob- 
scurity. I  have  spent  three  evenings  this  week  in  my  own  room,  and 
have  in  some  measure  retrieved  my  particular  arrearages.  The  weather 
has  been  very  favorable,  so  that  I  have  not  been  forced  to  drop  my  pen 
from  the  stiffness  of  my  fingers.  The  winter  is  already  far  advanced, 
and  is  now  rapidly  passing  away.  I  can  afford,  if  the  severity  of  the 
weather  should  require  it,  to  fall  back  once  or  twice  more;  and  the  ex- 
tremity cannot,  I  think,  last  so  long  as  to  make  me  lose  the  thread  of 
my  adventures.  It  seems  as  if  we  were  fated  to  have  no  lasting  snow 
this  winter.     It  snow'd  again  all  this  forenoon ;  but  so  soon  as  a  suf- 

1  Lucy  Fletcher,  probably  the  daughter  of  Captain  John  Fletcher  j  married 
"her  friend,"  "William  Amory,  August  9,  1789. 


86  DIABY  OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

ficient  quantity  had  fallen  to  make  good  sleighing,  it  turn'd  to  rain, 
which,  I  suppose,  will  sweep  it  all  away  again. 

20th.  I  attended  at  Parson  Carey's  meeting.  ^Ye  had  two  sermons, 
in  continuation  of  a  subject  upon  which  he  preached  last  Sunday ;  the 
excellency  of  Christianity.  I  pass'd  the  whole  evening  in  writing  very 
industriously ;  not  a  little  to  the  increase  of  this  volume.  It  thaw'd 
all  last  night,  but  not  so  as  to  carry  off  all  the  snow.  The  streets  were 
like  a  river  the  chief  of  the  day,  but  at  about  five  the  wind  got  round  to 
the  north-west  and  blew  with  some  violence.  In  two  hours  time  the 
streets  were  dry,  and  the  ice  strong  enough  to  bear  a  man.  I  think 
I  never  saw  a  more  sudden  or  a  greater  alteration  in  the  weather. 
The  wind  subsided  to  a  degree  before  midnight,  but  left  it  very  cold. 
And  now  I  bid  adieu  to  my  pen  and  to  my  book. 

21st.  I  began  upon  the  third  book  of  the  first  part  of  the  Institutes,* 
and  read  a  few  pages  as  usual.  In  the  evening  I  again  look'd  into 
Gibbon,  and  made  some  progress  in  his  second  volume.  I  have  also 
been  reading  for  these  two  or  three  days  past  the  letters  from  a  Chinese 
Philosopher,^  which  are  a  number  of  essays  upon  various  subjects, 
wrought  into  a  kind  of  a  novel.  They  are  entertaining,  and  exhibit 
no  bad  picture  of  English  manners.  The  accounts  from  Boston  this 
evening  are  disagreeable.  The  opposite  parties  in  the  Convention 
grow  warm  and  irritable ;  Mr.  Dana  and  Mr.  Gerry,  it  is  said,  have 
come  to  an  open  and  public  rupture.*     Mr.  B.  Lincoln,*  the  General's 

1  "Institutes  of  the  Laws  of  England;  or  Commentary  on  Littleton  "  —  i.  e., 
Coke  upon  Littleton. 

2  This  work  by  Oliver  Goldsmith  —  "The  Citizen  of  the  World;  or  Letters 
from  a  Chinese  Philosopher  residing  in  London,  to  his  Friends  in  the  East" — 
had  been  published  twenty-five  years  before,  in  1762. 

8  A  letter  dated  Boston,  January  19,  1788,  and  written  by  J.  Q.  Adams's 
youngest  classmate,  John  Forbes,  a  lad  of  sixteen,  gives  a  rather  interesting 
if  boyish  view  of  this  well-known  episode:  — 

"...  The  Convention  are  now  sitting  in  this  town.  I  have  attended  the 
debates  till  I  have  become  quite  interested.  The  weight  of  argument  offer'd 
is  so  much  in  favor  of  the  Constitution  that  I  cannot  but  at  present  beg  to  dis- 
sent with  you  and  term  myself  a  Federalist.  I  am  sorry  to  inform  you  that 
your  opinion  is  so  poorly  advocated  —  there  is  not  a  man  of  education  that  dare 
speak  in  opposition  to  the  plan,  there  are  but  few  on  that  side,  and  those  few, 
fearing  conviction,  are  fortifying  their  prejudiced  minds  with  adamantine  obsti- 
nacy. The  characters  that  support  it  are  so  respectable  that  shou'd  it  be  re- 
jected in  this  State  it  will  retire  without  a  blush  —  Dana,  King,  Gorham,  Strong, 
Parsons,  Cabot,  Ames  and  Sedgwick  are  characters  so  pure  that  nothing  but 
Gerry's  spirit  of  opposition  cou'd  soil.  The  Anti  have  made  every  exertion 
in  their  power  and  have  got  Gerry  as  a  dictionary  to  use  occasionally.  They 
remind   me  of  the  old  proverb  — '  give  'em  an  inch  and  they'll  take  an  ell.' 


*  Benjamin  Lincoln  (H.  C.  1777),  born  in  Hingham  November  1,  1756;  studied 
law  with  Levi  Lincoln,  of  Worcester ;  an  attorney  in  Boston ;  died  January  18, 
1788.    Hist,  of  Hingham,  vol.  i.  part  ii.  p.  332.  .    * 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  87 

son,  and  Dr.  Adams,^  son  to  the  president  of  the  Senate,  died  last 
week. 

22d.  This  afternoon,  Leonard  White  called  on  me,  and  sat  about 
half  an  hour.  He  came  from  Haverhill  this  morning,  and  returns  to 
night.  Between  four  and  five  I  received  an  invitation  from  Putnam  and 
F.  Bradbury  to  join  them  for  a  party  at  sleighing.  Though  not  pecu- 
liarly desirous  to  go  I  did  not  refuse  ;  and  at  about  six  o'clock  we  started. 
We  went  to  Sawyer's  ^  tavern,  about  three  miles  off,  and  there  danced 
till  between  twelve  and  one.  The  company  was  rather  curiously  sorted, 
but  the  party  was  agreeable.  I  danced  with  the  eldest  Miss  Frazier, 
with  Miss  Fletcher,  and  with  Miss  Coats.'  Miss  Fletcher  appears  to 
be  about  twenty.  She  is  not  tall,  but  has  what  is  called  a  very  genteel 
shape.  Her  complexion  is  fair,  and  her  eye  is  sometimes  animated 
with  a  very  pleasing  expression ;  but  unfortunately  she  is  in  love,  and 
unless  the  object  of  her  affections  is  present  she  loses  all  her  spirits, 
grows  dull  and  unsociable,  and  can  be  pleased  with  nothing.  This 
evening  she  was  obliged  to  dispense  with  his  company ;  and  the  usual 
effect  took  place.  I  endeavour'd  as  much  as  possible  to  bring  on  a 
conversation  ;  but  all  to  no  purpose. 

"  She  sat  like  Patience  on  a  monument, 
Smiling  at  grief."* 

And,  as  I  found  she  could  talk  only  in  monosyllables,  I  was  glad  to 
change  my  partner.  Miss  Coats  is  not  in  love,  and  is  quite  sociable. 
Her  manners  are  not  exactly  what  I  should  wish  for  a  friend  of  mine  ; 
yet  she  is  agreeable.  I  am  not  obliged  with  her  both  to  make  and  sup- 
port the  conversation  ;  and  moreover,  what  is  very  much  in  her  favour, 

They  obtain'd  a  vote  to  question  Mr.  G.  on  certain  Articles  ;  from  this  they  wish'd 
to  give  him  the  priviledges  of  a  deligate,  and  allow  him  to  speak  to  Article 
■well  motion  F.  Dana  opposed  with  violence.  The  issue  was  interrupted  by  an 
adjournment  till  Monday  next.  I  am  sorry  to  say  that  the  objections  are  prin- 
cipally founded  on  misconstruction.  I  embark  for  Lancaster  next  Tuesday 
morning.    Shou'd  have  gone  before  had  not  the  debates  prevented." 

Several  of  J.  Q.  Adams's  college  friends  gathered  in  Boston  from  the  surround- 
ing towns  to  attend  the  debates,  and  sent  him  accounts  of  the  proceedings. 

^  Dr.  Samuel  Adams  (II.  C.  1770),  only  sou  of  Samuel  Adams,  born  in  Boston 
October  27, 1751 ;  prepared  for  college  at  the  Latin  School ;  studied  medicine  with 
Dr.  Joseph  Warren ;  served  as  a  surgeon  from  Lexington  aud  Bunker  Hill  to  the 
end  of  the  war;  an  invalid  for  man}-  years;  died  January  17,  1788.  J.  Thacber, 
American  Medical  Biography,  p.  89. 

2  Sawyer's  tavern  on  the  Bradford  road,  just  beyond  the  Artichoke  River,  near 
Brown's  Springs,  nearly  opposite  the  house  in  which  President  Felton  of  Harvard 
was  born,  and  not  far  from  Tristram  Dalton's  country  estate. 

3  Elizabeth  Coates,  only  child  of  Captain  David  Coates  ;  married,  November  2, 
1791,  John  Greenleaf,  son  of  Judge  Benjamin  Greenleaf ;  died  a  year  later,  aged 
twenty-seven.    J.  E.  Greenleaf,  Genealogy  of  the  Greenleaf  Family. 

*  twelfth  Night,  Act  ii.  Scene  4. 


88  DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

she  is  an  only  daughter  and  her  father  has  money.  We  return'd  to 
town  a  little  after  twelve  ;  but  the  weather  was  not  very  agreeable,  as 
it  snow'd  violently.  After  we  had  carried  home  the  ladies,  Putnam 
came  to  lodge  with  me.  We  sat  and  chatted  about  an  hour,  and  then 
retired  to  bed. 

23d.  ...  I  pass'd  the  evening  at  Dr.  Swett's.  Mrs.  and  Miss  Caz- 
neau  were  there.  We  had  some  agreeable  and  entertaining  conver- 
sation, but  singing  soon  came  on  to  the  carpet,  and  then  the  usual  uon- 
sence  succeeded.  I  believe  I  will  try  one  of  these  days  and  see  if  I 
cannot  stop  the  career  of  this  same  singing,  at  least  for  one  evening. 
I  even  got  quit  this  time  with  singing  once.  In  order  not  to  appear 
singular,  I  was  in  the  common  way  urging  Miss  Cazneau  to  sing;  she 
told  me  she  would  upon  condition  that  I  should  sing  first.  I  humm'd 
over  a  tune ;  but  avoided  claiming  the  fulfilment  of  Miss  C's  promise, 
and  so  she  would  not  sing,  which  happened  very  much  to  my  satisfac- 
tion.   A  short  time  before  nine  I  left  them. 

24th.  Mr.  Atkins  returned  from  Boston,  but  brought  me  no  letters, 
which  is  somewhat  surprizing  to  me.  The  quaternity  pass'd  the  even- 
ing at  Putnam's  lodgings.  Little  left  us,  however,  at  about  eight  o'clock. 
Towusend  came  in  soon  after ;  and  between  nine  and  ten  I  walk'd  with 
him.  I' began  yesterday  upon  another  attempt  to  ascend  Parnassus; 
and  this  time  I  am  determined  to  take  it  leisurely.  I  have  frequently 
made  a  trial  of  my  strength  in  this  way  ;  but  my  patience  has  always 
been  overcome  after  proceeding  but  little.  I  have,  I  suppose,  begun  an 
hundred  times  to  write  poetry.  I  have  tried  every  measure  and  every 
kind  of  strophe,  but  of  the  whole  I  never  finish'd  but  one  of  any 
length,  and  that  was  in  fact  but  the  work  of  a  day.  It  is  contained  in 
a  former  volume  of  this  Journal.*  I  fear  I  shall  end  this  time  as  I 
always  do.  The  Convention  are  now  proceeding  in  the  examination 
of  the  proposed  Constitution  by  sections  ;  but  we  cannot  yet  presume 
how  the  scale  will  turn. 

2oth.  Leonard  White  came  from  Plaverhill  again  yesterday,  and 
called  to  see  me  this  morning.  He  informed  me  that  both  my  brothers 
■were  at  Haverhill.  In  the  evening  I  went  with  him  to  Dr.  Swett's,  and 
pass'd  an  hour  with  Little.  I  communicated  to  Little  my  design  of 
drawing  a  number  of  female  characters,  but  I  doubt  whether  it  will 
ever  be  anything  more  than  a  design. 

26th.  At  home  as  usual  all  the  evening.  Read  a  little  in  Gibbon. 
Wrote  in  the  same  slavish  way  as  I  have  done  now  for  more  than  three 
years.  But  I  feel  dull  and  low  spirited.  I  have  neither  that  insati- 
able ambition,  nor  that  ardor  for  pursuing  the  means  to  gratify  it,  which 
not  long  ago  was  an  argument  which  my  vanity  offered  my  mind  to 
prove  that,  if  life  should  be  given  me,  it  would  not  be  to  live  unknow- 

1  Printed  by  H.  Adams  in  Historical  Essays,  pp.  118-121. 


DIARY  OF  JOHN   QUIXCY   ADAMS.  89 

ing  and  unknown.  I  feel  no  extraordinary  inclination  for  study  of  any 
kind.  Putnam  reads  law  as  fast,  or  faster  than  I  do  ;  and,  if  there  is  to 
be  no  alteration  in  the  situation  of  my  mind,  he  will  make  greater  im- 
provements in  his  three  years  than  I  shall  in  mine.  Before  the  cold 
weather  came  on,  I  expected  to  derive  great  advantage  from  the  long 
winter  evenings  which  were  approaching.  In  my  imagination,  I  had 
written  volumes  and  read  books  without  number.  Yet  so  totally  dif- 
ferent has  been  the  event,  that  I  have  written  scarcely  any  thing  except 
what  this  book  contains,  and,  though  I  began  Gibbon  three  months 
ago,  I  have  not  got  half  through  the  second  volume.  In  my  Lord  Coke  I 
trudge  along  at  the  rate  of  about  eighty  pages  a  week,  and  do  not  under- 
stand a  quarter  part  of  that.  Yet  when  I  call  myself  to  an  account 
an[d]  enquire  how  I  mis-spend  my  time,  I  do  not  find  a  spirit  of  dissi- 
pation in  my  conduct.  I  have,  I  believe,  upon  an  average,  spent  one 
half  of  my  evenings  this  winter  at  home ;  and,  when  I  do,  I  almost 
always  hear  the  morning  clock.  I  somewhat  suspect  that  irregularity 
is  one  great  cause  of  my  poor  success,  and,  as  I  am  peculiarly  fond  of 
trying  experiments,  I  will  attempt  soon  to  be  periodical  in  my  visits  at 
home  and  abroad.     If  this  will  not  do,  I  can  only  submit  to  my  fate. 

27th.  Heard  Parson  Carey,  the  whole  day.  In  the  forenoon  he 
was  intolerably  lengthy,  as  the  weather  was  very  cold.  I  intended  to 
have  visited  somewhere  this  evening,  but  got  engaged  in  writing  to 
Packard,  which  employ'd  me  till  ten  o'clock. 

28th.  Mrs.  Hooper's  family  are  in  great  distress.  Ben  was  brought 
home  dead  last  night  between  twelve  and  one  o'clock,  and  to  make  the 
misfortune  as  great  as  possible  there  is  every  reason  to  suppose  that 
he  was  the  wilful  author  of  his  death.  He  had  been  from  town  more 
than  a  week,  and  on  Saturday  night  he  took  a  quantity  of  liquid  lauda- 
num at  Robertson's  tavern  in  Salem ;  he  died  in  violent  convulsions 
in  the  course  of  the  same  night.  The  verdict  of  the  coroner's  jury, 
it  is  said,  was  wilful  self  murder,  but  the  information  is  indirect,  and 
therefore  not  entirely  to  be  depended  upon.  To  his  mother  the  shock 
must  be  dreadful.  Indeed  she  seems  to  have  been  marked  out  for  mis- 
fortune. Her  father  was  formerly  one  of  the  wealthiest  merchants  in 
this  town,  and  her  education  was  suitable  to  his  fortune.  She  married 
a  Mr.  Hooper,  whose  circumstances  were  no  less  advantageous,  and 
entered,  but  little  more  than  twenty  years  ago,  upon  the  stage  of  the 
world  with  the  most  pleasing  prospects.  But  her  husband  was  a  man 
of  pleasure  and  dissipation,  and  moreover  opposed  to  the  late  revolu- 
tions, wherefore  he  left  the  country  at  the  beginning  of  the  late  war, 
and  went  to  England,  where  he  still  remains ;  since  that  time  she  has 
been  reduced  to  the  necessity  of  supporting  herself  and  her  three 
children  by  taking  boarders.  For  although  several  of  her  husband's 
nearest  connections  are  still  persons  of  the   greatest  affluence  that 

12 


90  DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

are  in  the  town,  yet  she  has  never  received  much  assistance   from 

them. 

Donee  oris  f elix,  multos  numerabis  amicos : 
Tempora  si  fuerint  nubila  solus  eris. 

She  endeavoured  to  educate  her  children  as  well  as  possible  ;  but  a 
father's  care  was  wanting,  and  indulgence  is  the  defect  even  of  the  most 
accomplished  women.  Ben,  for  several  years,  had  followed  the  sea, 
and,  in  the  fall,  was  disappointed  of  sailing  with  Callahan  for  London. 
He  had  been  very  dissipated  and  debauched ;  he  found  himself  destitute 
of  employment;  his  reputation  lost,  his  means  of  continuing  in  the 
course  of  life  which  he  was  pursuing  gone,  and  his  resolution  insuffi- 
cient to  reform  his  conduct.  He  determined  to  put  an  end  to  all  the 
disagreeable  feelings  of  his  mind,  and  to  "  die  in  the  bed  of  honour," 
as  he  expressed  it.  He  was  scarce  nineteen  years  old.  Such  was  the 
deplorable  fate  of  a  youth,  whose  disposition  was  such  that  he  would 
have  injured  no  one  but  himself,  and  who  might  have  been  an  orna- 
ment to  society  had  he  been  educated  under  the  prudent  severity  of  a 
judicious  father.  They  intend  to  bury  him  to-morrow,  but  it  is  doubt- 
ful whether  the  unfeeling  passions  of  the  multitude  will  suffer  them 
to  make  a  public  funeral.  My  brothers  Charles  and  Tom  came  into 
town  this  forenoon.  After  dinner,  I  took  a  ride  in  a  sleigh  up  to 
Sawyer's,  with  three  of  the  Bradburys  and  Charles;  drank  tea  at 
Mr.  Tufts's.  I  pass'd  the  evening  and  supped  at  Mr.  Jackson's. 
Dr.  Kilham  was  there,  and  as  usual  conversed  upon  political  sub- 
jects. Charles  spent  the  evening  at  Mr.  Frazier's,  but  came  and 
lodged  with  me. 

29th.  It  snow'd  part  of  the  forenoon ;  then  turn'd  to  rain,  and,  after 
making  the  streets  very  disagreeable,  cleared  up  in  the  afternoon.  I 
dined  with  my  brothers  at  Mr.  Bradbury's.  We  had  some  conversation 
upon  the  subject  of  Ben  Hooper's  funeral.  I  could  not  agree  in  senti- 
ment with  Mr.  Bradbury.  I  told  him  that  althougli  I  abhorr'd  the  action 
itself  as  much  as  any  one,  yet  after  a  man  was  dead  to  refuse  to  attend 
his  funeral  would  only  be  an  insult  upon  the  feelings  of  his  friends, 
without  being  any  kind  of  punishment  to  him.  And  indeed  I  cannot 
but  think  that  laws  against  suicide  are  impolitic  and  cruel,  for  how 
can  it  be  expected  that  human  laws,  which  cannot  take  hold,  of  the 
offender  personally,  should  restrain  from  the  commission  of  this  crime 
the  man  who  could  disregard  the  natural  and  divine  laws,  which  upon 
this  subject  are  so  deeply  imprinted  upon  the  heart  ?  When  we  con- 
sider too  how  easily  such  a  law  may  be  evaded,  how  many  ways  a 
man  might  put  a  period  to  his  own  existence  without  exposing  himself 
to  the  severity  of  any  law  that  the  human  fansy  could  invent,  we  can 
only  suppose  that  these  punishments  must  fall  merely  upon  a  thought- 
less youth,  or  upon  one  ignorant  of  the  existence  of  such  regulations. 


DIAEY  OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  91 

Mr.  Bradbury,  however,  thinks  differently  and  is  perhaps  in  the  right. 
I  pass'd  about  an  hour  in  the  evening  with  Putnam  ;  he  then  went 
with  G.  Bradbury  and  my  brothers  into  a  company  of  young  ladies  ; 
and  I  cross'd  the  street  and  sat  till  nine  o'clock  with  my  friend 
Thompson.     Tom  lodg'd  with  me. 

30th.  I  went  up  to  the  office  in  the  morning,  and  sat  a  couple  of 
hours ;  but  I  felt  restless  and  dissipated.  I  could  not  study,  and 
therefore  walk'd  down  in  town  and  saunter'd  about.  Dined  with 
G.  Bradbury  and  Charles  at  Mr.  Hooper's.  He  is  very  sanguine  iu 
his  hopes  for  the  adoption  of  the  Constitution.  Pass'd  the  evening 
at  Mr.  Bradbury's.  Dr.  Smith  and  all  his  family  were  there.  We 
had  some  music  in  the  beginning  of  the  evening,  and  afterwards  play'd 
a  number  of  very  amusing  sports,  such  as  start ;  what  is  it  like ;  cross 
questions ;  I  love  my  love  with  an  A ;  and  a  number  more.  My 
opinion  of  such  diversions  I  have  already  given,  when  it  was  confined 
to  a  number  of  young  persons;  but  that  the  most  inexcusable  levities 
of  youth  should  appear  in  the  garb  of  old-age  is  something  that  calls 
for  more  than  disapprobation,  nor  will  a  grey  hair'd  trifler  excite  our 
pity  merely,  but  must  raise  our  indignation  and  contempt.  Mr.  Brad- 
bury,^ however,  is  a  very  respectable  man  ;  and,  as  this  conduct  has 
here  the  sanction  of  custom,  it  is  not  him  but  the  manners  of  the  times 
that  I  blame. 

31st.  The  weather  somewhat  cold.  My  brothers  dined  with  me, 
and  between  three  and  four  o'clock  we  all  set  off  for  Haverhill.  We 
got  there  just  after  five,  a  little  fatigued.  The  riding  was  not  bad, 
but  in  some  places  the  cold  had  not  been  strong  enough  to  harden 
the  snow  and  the  road  was  sloppy. 

Friday,  February  1,  1788. 

Pass'd  a  great  part  of  the  forenoon  at  Mr.  Thaxter's.  He  is  now 
quite  in  the  family  way ;  he  dined  with  us  at  Mr.  Shaw's,  as  did  Leonard 

White  and  .      In  the  afternoon  we  rode  in  a  couple  of  sleighs 

about  six  miles  down  upon  the  river,  and  return'd  just  after  dark. 

The  party  was  agreeable ;  but was  an  object  of  great  pity.     He 

has  ruined  his  reputation  irrevocably ;  the  fairest  life  henceforward 
could  only  heal  the  wound  ;  but  the  treacherous  fear  must  forever 
proclaim  in  indelible  characters  that  he  once  fell.  Nor  can  his  dear- 
est friends  help  acknowledging  to  themselves  that  this  is  viewing  the 

1  Mr.  Theophilus  Bradbury  (see  supra,  p.  40)  was  apparently  fond  of  a  social 
good  time.  In  1766,  it  is  said,  he  and  his  wife  "  with  several  leading  citizens  of 
Falmouth"  {i.  e.,  Portland)  were  indicted  for  the  crime  of  dancing  at  a  tavern  ; 
but  won  the  case  in  the  courts  on  the  plea  that  the  room  was  not  a  place  of  pub- 
lic resort  because  hired  for  private  purposes,  etc.  W.  B.  Lapham,  Bradbury 
Memorial,  p.  89. 


92  DIAKY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. ' 

prospect  iu  its  fairest  liglit.  To  consider  the  appearances  such  as  they 
must  present  themselves  to  the  imagination  of  one  disposed  to  see 
objects  in  their  most  unfavorable  colours,  must  be  shocking  to  the 
feelings  of  every  one  who  was  once  his  friend.  He  appears  to  be  in 
a  perpetual  state  of  humiliation  ;  he  can  enter  into  no  satisfaction 
express'd  by  the  company  iu  which  he  appears  ;  he  can  enjoy  no 
amusement  and  must  feel  a  conscious  inferiority  to  every  one  with 
whom  he  associates.  Yet  if  he  can  be  recovered  at  all  it  must  be  by 
softening  measures.  And  those  persons  who  wonder  why  people  keep 
company  with  him,  and  wish  rather  to  insult  him  in  his  distress,  are 
in  my  opinion  to  be  esteemed  but  little  better  than  himself.  The 
disposition  in  human  nature  to  sink  a  man  that  has  fallen  still  lower 
than  he  is  would  afford  one  of  the  richest  themes  for  a  misanthropist. 

2d.     I  dined  with at  Mr.  Thaxter's.     My  brothers  both  dined 

at  Mr.  White's.  In  the  afternoon  we  rode  again  in  sleighs  upon  the 
river  as  ftir  as  we  went  yesterday.  We  had  a  number  of  songs,  some- 
what in  the  collegiate  stile ;  but,  in  order  to  be  exemplary,  return'd 
home  quite  early  in  the  evening.  Mr.  Thaxter  lives  very  agreeably, 
and  has  retracted  his  theory  with  respect  to  matrimony;  and  indeed, 
I  believe,  our  sex  are  not  less  prone  than  the  other  to  profess  a  sys- 
tem which  in  fact  we  wholly  disbelieve.     Mrs.  Shaw  shew  me  a  letter 

which  she  has  been  writing  to ;  and  I  am  in  hopes  it  may  have 

a  good  effect  upon  him.  If  he  has  any  sensibility,  or  any  principles 
remaining  he  must  be  affected  by  it.  I  had  with  Mr.  Shaw  some 
conversation  upon  the  subject  of  the  disorders  which  happened  at 
College  in  the  course  of  the  last  quarter.  His  fears  for  my  brothers 
are  greater  than  mine.  I  am  persuaded  that  Charles  did  not  deserve 
the  suspicions  which  were  raised  against  him ;  and  I  have  great  hopes 
that  his  future  conduct  will  convince  the  governors  of  the  University 
that  he  was  innocent. 

3d.  I  attended  meeting  twice  this  day.  Mr.  Shaw  as  usual  had 
company  in  the  evening.  I  conversed  with  Madam.  Charles  and 
Tom  went  out  in  the   evening. 

•4:th.  This  morning  between  seven  and  eight  o'clock  my  brothers  set 
out  to  return  to  Braintree  and  from  thence  to  Cambridge,  as  the  vaca- 
tion closes  next  Wednesday.  In  the  forenoon  I  went  down  to  see 
Leonard  White,  who  was  not  at  home.  I  met  him  however  in  the  street 
with  Mr.  M'Hard,  to  whose  house  we  went  and  sat  an  hour.  I  dined 
at  Mr.  Shaw's,  and  at  about  four  was  on  my  horse.  I  got  home  by  dark, 
though  the  roads  were  much  worse  than  when  we  went  to  Haverhill. 
I  found  my  old  lady  had  some  company,  but  they  soon  went  away.  1 
pass'd  all  the  evening  at  home  quite  in  low  spirits,  as  indeed  I  have 
been  for  a  week  or  ten  days  past.  Not  even  dissipation  has  been  able 
to  support  me.     My  nerves  have  got  into  a  disagreeable  trim,  and  I 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  93 

fear  I  shall  be  obliged  to  pay  still  less  attention  to  books  than  I  have  of 
late;  and,  if  that  be  the  case,  I  am  sure  I  must  be  very  ignorant  when 
I  leave  the  title  of  a  student.  It  seems  very  unfortunate  that  there 
should  be  no  medium  but  that  a  man  must  be  a  fool  or  an  invalid. 

5th.  The  weather  this  day  has  been  extreme  cold.  I  have  not 
experienced  the  severity  of  the  season  so  much  since  the  winter  I 
pass'd  in  Sweden.^  I  pass'd  the  evening  with  Townsend  and  Amory 
at  Dr.  Smith's.  The  old  man  is  very  fond  of  telling  long  stories,  and 
indeed  it  is  quite  necessary  to  attend  to  him.  There  are,  however,  two 
young  ladies  in  the  house,  to  whom  we  attend  with  much  more  pleasure. 
Miss  Smith  may  be  twenty  years  old ;  she  is  not  handsome,  but  has  a 
great  degree  of  animation  in  her  eye,  and,  as  the  want  of  it  appears 
conspicuous  in  every  other  feature,  the  mixture  of  opposites  has  a  sin- 
gular effect  upon  her  countenance.  Her  person  is  not  elegant,  nor  is  her 
taste  in  dress  such  as  suits  my  mind.  She  has  a  satyrical  turn,  and  is 
fond  of  being  esteemed  witty.  So  much,  I  think,  I  can  judge  from  the 
short  acquaintance  I  have  with  her ;  perhaps  at  some  future  period  I 
may  be  able  to  say  more.  Miss  Putnam  I  will  mention  the  next  time 
I  fall  in  company  with  her.  We  play'd  at  whist  about  a  couple  of 
hours ;  after  which  we  sung  or  attempted  to  sing ;  for,  of  all  the 
company,  Amory  was  the  only  one  that  could  sing  so  as  to  give  any 
kind  of  entertainment. 

6th.  The  weather  has  moderated  very  considerably.  In  the  even- 
ing I  walked  with  Thompson  and  Putnam  to  Little's,  where  we  past 
the  evening  till  nine  o'clock,  quite  agreeably,  without  ceremony  or 
restraint. 

7th.  This  day,  at  about  noon,  the  news  arrived  in  this  town  that 
the  Federal  Constitution  was  yesterday  adopted  and  ratified  by  a  major- 
ity of  nineteen  members  in  our  State  Convention.  In  this  town  the 
satisfaction  is  almost  universal  ;  for  my  own  part,  I  have  not  been 
pleased  with  this  system,  and  my  acquaintance  have  long-since  branded 
me  with  the  name  of  an  antifederalist.  But  I  am  now  converted, 
though  not  convinced.  My  feelings  upon  the  occasion  have  not  been 
passionate  nor  violent ;  and,  as  upon  the  decision  of  this  question  I  find 
myself  on  the  weaker  side,  I  think  it  my  duty  to  submit  without  mur- 
muring against  what  is  not  to  be  helped.  In  our  government,  opposi- 
tion to  the  acts  of  a  majority  of  the  people  is  rebellion  to  all  intents 
and  purposes ;  and  I  should  view  a  man  who  would  now  endeavour  to 

^  On  his  return  from  Russia  to  Holland  at  the  close  of  1782.  Travelling 
alone,  being  then  fifteen  years  of  age,  he  reached  Stockholm  on  the  23d  of 
November.  There  spent  five  very  pleasant  weeks,  and,  on  the  last  day  of  the 
year,  set  out  for  Copenhagen  ;  but  it  took  him  six  weeks  to  get  tlit-re.  It  was 
the  20th  of  April  before  he  rejoined  his  father  at  the  Hague,  six  months,  lacking 
ten  days,  from  the  date  of  his  leaving  St.  Petersburg. 


94  DIAEY  OF  JOHN  QUINCY  ADAMS. 

excite  commotions  against  this  plan,  as  no  better  than  an  insurgent 
who  took  arms  last  winter  against  the  Courts  of  Justice.  This  after- 
noon 1  went,  in  company  with  a  number  of  young  ladies  and  gentlemen 
of  this  town,  upon  a  sleighing  party.  We  rode  about  eight  miles  into 
Newbury,  and  by  dark  return'd  to  Sawyer's  tavern.  After  drinking  tea 
we  went  to  dancing,  and,  excepting  supper,  continued  so  till  about  mid- 
night. I  danced  with  Miss  Coats  and  Miss  Smith,  both  of  whom  were 
very  agreeable  partners.  At  twelve  we  broke  up,  and  retui*u'd  home. 
Thompson  came  and  lodg'd  with  me.  Mr.  S.  Cutler  ^  came  and  sat 
about  half  an  hour  with  me;  he  was  exceedingly  mortified  at  having 
overset  his  sleigh.  Some  of  the  ladies  were  affronted,  and  some 
affrighted ;  so  that,  in  returning,  he  had  somewhat  of  an  uncomfortable 
time,  sweating  between  two  fires.  In  the  company  was  an  Irish  gentle- 
man by  the  name  of  Hutchinson,  a  man  of  genuine  wit  and  humour, 
and  a  person  of  much  reading  and  information.  He  has  a  vessel  here 
loading,  and  expects  to  sail  for  Ireland  in  a  week  or  ten  days. 

8th.  This  afternoon  the  delegates  from  Newbury  and  from  this 
town  returned  home  from  Convention.  A  number  of  very  respectable 
citizens,  and  a  number  who  were  not  very  respectable,  went  out  on 
horse-back  to  meet  the  members  and  escort  them  into  town ;  as  they 
came  along  the  bells  at  the  different  churches  were  set  to  ringing,  and 
this  noisy  expression  of  joy  was  continued  with  some  intermissions 
till  eight  o'clock  in  the  evening.  The  mob  huzza'd,  and  one  would  have 
thought  that  every  man  from  the  adoption  of  the  Constitution  had 
acquired  a  sure  expectancy  of  an  independent  fortune.  I  pass'd  the 
evening  at  home  in  reading  and  writing. 

9th.  Mr.  Parsons  gave  me  this  morning  a  packet  of  letters  which 
I  have  been  expecting  these  five  weeks.  There  was,  however,  but  one 
short  letter  from  Europe.  In  the  afternoon  Amory  went  for  Salem. 
I  took  a  ride  with  Townsend,  S.  Cutler,  J.  Greenleaf  ,^  Prout,^  Thomp- 
son, and  three  or  four  ladies  in  a  sleigh.  We  rode  out  as  far  as  Mr. 
Dalton's  farm  ;  and,  after  taking  something  of  a  circuitous  rout,  return'd 
and  took  tea  at  Sawyer's.     After  passing  an  hour  we  all  return'd  to 

1  Samuel  Cutler,  born  in  Boston  October  5,  1752 ;  married,  January  8,  1794, 
Lydia  Prout  (horn  March  8,  1769)  ;  botli  were  drowned,  January  28,  1832,  by 
the  capsizing  of  the  schooner  Rob  Roy  between  Portland  and  Newburyport ;  a 
merchant;  in  later  life  president  of  an  insurance  company;  also  vestryman  and 
warden  of  St.  Paul's  Church.     N.  S.  Cutler,  Cutler  Memorial,  p.  865. 

'•^  Presumably  John  Greenlcaf,  son  of  Judge  Benjamin  Greenleaf ;  born  July 
8,  1760;  married,  November  2,  1791,  Elizabeth  Coates ;  resided  in  Newburyport 
and  in  Topshara,  Me.;  served  in  the  War  of  1812;  died  about  1830.  J.  E. 
Greenleaf,  Genealogy  of  the  Greenleaf  Family,  pp.  176,  427. 

3  William  Welsted  Prout  (1761-1809)  in  1794  liad  a  store  on  High  Street; 
later  cashier  of  the  Newburyport  Bank;  married  Sally  Jenkins;  left  no  cliildren. 
His  portrait,  as  a  young  man,  is  in  the  rooms  of  the  Newburyport  Historical 
Society. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN  QUINCY   ADAMS.  95 

town.  I  spent  the  evening  at  Mrs.  Hooper's.  It  was  the  first  time  I 
had  been  there  since  her  misfortune.  She  bears  it  well,  though  fre- 
quent sighs  rise  deep  from  her  breast.  Mr.  L.  Jenkins  ■■■  was  there, 
a  good,  honest,  simple  soul,  without  the  least  kind  of  harm  in  him. 
Miss  Lucy  Knight  was  there  too.  She  has  a  very  amiable  countenance, 
a  fine  form  and  a  benevolent  disposition.  Townsend  says  she  has  no 
sensibility,  and  I  think  her  countenance  wants  some  of  that  expression 
which  communicates  the  charm  of  sympathy  to  our  souls.  She  may 
be  possessed  of  many  virtues,  and  if  so  will  attract  my  esteem  and 
respect ;  but  she  is  incapable  of  loving,  and  therefore  could  never  be 
an  object  of  love  to  me.  A  young  fellow  by  the  name  of  Rogers  for 
a  year  and  an  half  paid  the  closest  attention  to  her ;  and  when  it  was 
daily  expected  that  they  would  be  published  he  suddenly  left  her,  and 
neglected  her  entirely.  She  wrote  him  a  letter  containing  a  dismission, 
and  appears  not  to  have  had  a  disagreeable  sensation  upon  the  subject 
ever  since.  A  disposition  like  this  certainly  smooths  the  path  of  life ; 
but  at  the  same  time  it  certainly  serves  to  make  it  narrow  and 
contracted. 

10th.  I  went  with  Townsend  in  the  forenoon  to  hear  Parson  Tucker ; 
he  gave  us  an  excellent  discourse  upon  Ecclesiastes  VII.  17.  Be  not 
over  much  wicked,  neither  be  thou  foolish:  why  shouldest  thou  die 
before  thy  time  ?  Without  alluding  to  the  late  circumstance  of  Hooper's 
death,  it  appeared  plainly  that  the  sermon  was  dictated  by  that  occa- 
sion ;  and  it  was  very  well  adapted.  He  particularly  exhorted  his 
hearers  to  avoid  scenes  of  debauchery,  of  lewdness  and  intemperance, 
and,  with  his  usual  liberality  and  ability,  recommended  the  opposite 
virtues.  I  did  not  attend  meeting  in  the  afternoon  ;  but  wrote  a 
little  and  read  a  great  deal,  as  very  frequently  happens  with  me. 
Townsend  past  the  evening  and  supp'd  with  me.  I  have  done  keeping 
late  hours.  I  find  they  are  wholly  incompatible  with  my  health.  I 
have  of  late  several  times,  after  setting  up  at  writing  till  one  or  two 
o'clock  in  the  morning,  been  utterly  incapable  of  getting  any  sleep  the 
whole  night.  My  nerves  have  got  into  an  unhappy  tone,  and  I  am 
obliged  to  desist  from  continued  application.  My  spirits  for  some  time 
have  been  low,  and  I  have  felt  an  incapacity  of  enjoyment ;  but  that  is 
DOW  wearing  off",  and  I  am  in  hopes  that,  before  long,  I  shall  again  be 
able  to  resume  at  least  as  much  diligence  as  I  have  been  used  to. 

11th.  We  have  had  this  day  very  little  studying  in  the  office.  Mr. 
Parsons  is  so  fond  of  telling  of  all  the  manoeuvres  which  they  used  in 

1  Lewis  Jenkins  married  Rebecca  Hooper,  daughter  of  Robert  Hooper,  of 
Marblehead  ;  a  wool-dealer  living  on  State  Street ;  died  1799.  Mrs.  Tristram 
Dalton  was  a  sister,  and  Stephen  Hooper  a  brother,  of  Mrs.  Jenkins.  S.  A.  Emery, 
Reminiscences  of  a  Nonagenarian,  p.  236;  Historical  Collections  of  Essex  In- 
Btitute,  vol.  XXV.  p.  4- 


96  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  ' 

and  out  of  Convention,  that  he  has  given  the  same  story  to  every  body 
that  came  into  the  office  through  the  course  of  the  day.^  He  mentions 
with  great  complaisance  the  formidable  opposition  that  was  made,  as 
it  naturally  enhances  the  merit  of  the  victory.  He  speaks  with  pleasure 
of  every  little  trifling  intrigue  which  served  to  baffle  the  intentions  of 
the  antifederalists  ;  though  many  of  them  to  me  exhibit  a  meanness 
which  I  scarcely  should  expect  a  man  would  boast.  Mr.  Parsons 
makes  of  the  science  of  politics,  the  science  of  little,  insignificant 
intrigue  and  chicanery.  These  principles  may  possibly  meet  with  suc- 
cess sometimes  ;  but  it  is  my  opinion  that  fair,  open  and  candid  proceed- 
ings add  an  influence  as  well  as  a  lustre  to  the  most  brilliant  capacity. 
I  called  just  before  dark  to  see  Mr.  Hutchinson,  but  he  was  not  at  his 
lodgings.  I  then  went  home,  took  my  flute,  and  went  to  see  Putnam, 
with  whom  I  play'd  a  number  of  tunes.  Frank  Bradbury  was  there. 
Between  nine  and  ten  we  both  came  away.  I  got  home  with  some 
diiliculty,  as  the  walking  in  the  streets  is  excessively  slippery. 

12th.  In  the  beginning  of  the  evening  I  called  upon  Mr.  Hutchin- 
son, and  look'd  over  his  music.  He  plays  on  the  flute,  and  has  a  good 
collection  of  musical  books.  I  found  Tovvnsend  and  Amory  there. 
Between  seven  and  eight  I  went  to  Mr.  Bradbury's,  where  I  found  a 
number  of  the  young  gentlemen  and  ladies  dancing.  I  took  a  share 
in  the  diversion,  which  we  continued  till  midnight,  when  I  return'd  home. 
I  danced  with  Miss  Nancy  Jenkins,  a  very  pretty  girl,  about  seventeen, 
not  entirely  free  from  affectation. 

13th.  This  afternoon  I  had  something  of  a  long  conversation  upon 
the  subject  of  the  ball,  which  is  intended  to  be  on  Thursday.  He  had 
determined  not  to  go ;  but  upon  consideration  of  several  circumstances 
which  I  mentioned  to  him,  he  came  to  an  alteration  in  his  sentiments. 
He  was  something  piqued  at  not  having  an  invitation  to  join  our  party 
last  week  ;  but  when  I  informed  him  of  the  reason  for  which  he  was 
neglected  he  was  satisfied  with  its  validity.  He  and  Thompson  pass'd 
the  evening  with  me.  Little  ought  to  have  been  of  the  party ;  but 
Miss  Cazueau  had  engaged  him  to  go  with  her  to  Captain  Fletcher's. 

14th.  I  attended  at  the  office  only  in  the  forenoon;  the  after  part 
of  the  day  being  employ'd  in  rigging  for  the  ball.  I  had  sent  a  billet 
to  Miss  H.  Greenleaf '^  requesting  the  honor  of  waiting  upon  her.  She 
was  not  engaged  and  I  was  taken  at  my  word,  which  will  teach  me  to 
be  sincere.  It  was  late  before  I  could  get  a  carriage,  and,  when  I  went 
for  my  lady,  I  found  all  the  rest  of  the  family  were  gone,  which  was 
against  me  again.  The  ball  rooms  w"ere  too  small, —  not  one  quarter 
of  the  ladies  could  dance  at  a  time.  I  danced  enough  myself,  and 
made  out  to  affront  three  or  four  ladies ;  which  is  much  in  my  favour. 

1  See  W.  V.  Wells,  Life  of  Samuel  Adams,  vol.  iii.  pp.  257-262. 

2  See  infra,  p.  98. 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  97 

Townsend  took  cold  in  making  the  preparations  for  this  ball,  and  was  so 
unwell  that  at  about  eleven  o'clock  he  went  home,  and  consigned  his 
lady,  Miss  L.  Knight,  to  me.  She  being  very  agreeable  was,  upon  the 
whole,  I  believe,  more  the  object  of  my  attentions  than  another  lady. 
This  cannot  now  be  helped,  and  whatever  is,  is  right.  Between  three 
and  four  in  the  morning  the  remainder  of  the  company  retired.  Put- 
nam lodged  with  me.     The  party  was  perfectly  agreeable. 

loth.  We  indulged  ourselves  this  morning  till  almost  twelve  o'clock 
before  we  rose.  I  called  at  the  office,  and  pass'd  about  half  an  hour 
there.  I  felt  rather  dissipated,  and  somewhat  indisposed  for  study.  In 
the  afternoon,  when  I  called  at  the  office  I  found  Mr.  Wendell  there, 
—  a  singular  eccentric  character  with  whom  I  was  acquainted  while  I 
was  in  College,  and  whom  I  have  probably  mentioned  before  now.  He 
still  persists  in  his  singularities,  and  in  walking  from  Boston  the  day 
before  yesterday  froze  one  of  his  feet.  Townsend  is  quite  unwell ; 
has  an  uncomfortable  cough  and  sore  throat.  But  he  went  with  me 
to  visit  several  of  the  ladies  who  were  of  the  company  last  evening. 
We  first  called  at  Captain  Coombs's,^  where  we  only  found  Miss  Nancy 
Jenkins.  She  holds  her  head  too  stiiF  for  elegance  and  has  read  too 
many  novels,  which  render  her  manners  rather  fantastical  and  affected. 
We  stopped  a  few  moments  to  see  Miss  Coats,  who  was  well,  and  we 
then  went  to  Judge  Greenleaf's,  where  we  drank  tea.  Here  were 
young  ladies,  I  had  almost  said,  innumerable ;  a  choice  of  every  com- 
plection,  and  probably  of  every  disposition.  Among  them  all  Miss 
Derby  has  the  most    promising  appearance ;    but   she   iu  company  is 

1  Philip  Coombs,  father  of  William,  came  to  Newbury  from  the  island  of 
Guernsey,  was  converted  under  Wliitefield,  and  was  one  of  tiie  founders  of  the 
First  Presbyterian  Cliurch.  He  was  tal^en  as  a  prisoner  of  war  to  France, 
where  he  died  in  1759.  William  Coombs,  mentioned  in  the  diary  as  Captain 
Coombs,  was  born  in  Newburyport  in  1736,  wliere  lie  died  May  28,  1814.  He 
was  actively  engaged  in  maritime  life  till  he  was  forty  years  of  age,  when  he 
devoted  himself  to  merchandise.  Coombs  Wharf  is  named  for  him.  He  owned 
numerous  vessels.  His  last  voyage  was  just  before  the  Eevolutionary  War,  in 
order  to  obtain  a  supply  of  arms  and  ammunition  for  the  impending  contest;  an 
undertaking  in  which  his  success  exceeded  his  expectations,  and  he  generously 
turned  over  to  the  authorities  without  compensation  the  results  of  his  venture. 
Captain  Coombs  was  an  ardent  patriot,  and  did  good  service  as  a  member  of  the 
Committees  of  Safety  and  Correspondence,  which  held  the  power  of  government 
till  regular  authority  was  restored.  He  was  a  Representative  in  the  Legislature, 
President  of  the  Marine  Society,  President  of  the  Merrimac  Bible  Society,  trustee 
of  the  Dummer  Academy,  Chairman  of  the  School  Committee,  superintendent 
of  the  erection  of  the  Essex-Merrimac  Bridge,  and  of  the  Plum  Island  Light- 
house, and  Vice-President  of  the  Humane  Society,  which  gave  him  a  gold  medal 
for  saving  a  life  when  he  was  seventy-six  years  of  age.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
First  Presbyterian  Cliurch,  and  was  noted  for  his  piety,  urbanity  and  generosity. 
His  funeral  sermon,  by  Rev.  Daniel  Dana,  D.D.,  was  published.  Manuscript  notes 
of  Rev.  Horace  C.Hovey,  D.D.,  pastor  of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  in  New- 
buryport, Mass. 

13 


98  DIAKY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

reserved.  The  Judge  talk'd  about  relli^ion  and  politics,  and  Mrs. 
Greeiileaf  pass'd  encomiums  upon  the  British  Constitution  ;  but  the 
young  hxdies  were  all  silent.^  We  took  our  departure  quite  early^  and 
I  pass'd  the  remainder  of  the  evening  at  Mrs.  Hooper's  where  1  found 
]\Iiss  Knight  and  Mr.  Cutler.     Learnt  to  play  quadrille. 

16th.  The  most  violent  enow  storm  that  has  appeared  in  the  course 
of  the  winter ;  it  began  in  the  night,  and  continued  all  this  day.  In 
the  evening  it  cleared  up.  Townsend  was  not  out.  Amory  and  I 
dined  with  Mr.  Parsons.  Captain  Hodge "  likewise  was  of  the  com- 
pany. I  wrote  a  letter  in  the  afternoon,  or  rather  part  of  a  letter,  to 
W.  Cranch.  From  the  office  we  went  and  pass'd  an  hour  with  Mrs. 
Jackson,  where  we  found  Mr.  Wendell,  feasting  upon  his  apples  and 
nuts.  He  slept  hist  night  in  Mr.  J.  Tracey's  green  house,  which  is 
entirely  unprotected  from  the  inclemency  of  the  season  ;  and,  the  better 
to  enjoy  the  benefits  of  the  open  air,  he  stripp'd  hinjself  entirely  naked. 
He  converses  in  the  same  style  that  he  did  a  year  ago;  and  appears  to 
me  too  consistent  for  a  distracted  person,  as  many  suppose  him  to  be. 
We  spent  the  rem.iinder  of  the  evening  at  Dr.  Smith's.  I  made  an 
apology  to  ]Miss  Smith  for  a  blunder  which  took  place  at  the  ball. 
She  appeared  plainly  to  be  offended,  but  was  satisfied  after  I  had  made 
my  explanation.  I  know  not  whether  to  like  or  to  dislike  this  girl, 
but  perhaps  time  will  supply  me  with  the  means  of  information.  At 
supper  Amory  was  excessively  diverted  with  the  appearance  of  a 
Bologna  sausage,  which  the  Doctor  introduced,  and  which  Mr.  Cutler 
observed  would  be  ripe  in  June.  After  supper  I  got  seated  next  to 
MitiS  Putnam,  and  entered  into  conversation  with  her.     I  found  her 

1  Judge  Benjamin  Greenleaf  married,  January  22,  1784,  as  a  second  wife,  a 
widow,  Mrs.  Derby,  who  survived  iiim  many  years.  The  daughters  were 
Sarah  (born  June  21,  170.'> ;  died  in  old  age  unmarried),  Mary  (l)orn  November  1, 
17B5,  died  unmarried),  Hannah  (born  November  1,  17G5;  married,  September  22, 
1807,  Robert  Boyd,  of  Portland,  Me.),  Jane  (born  July  23,  17G8;  married  April 
12,  1802,  Ralph  Cross,  of  Portland).  J.  E.  Greenleaf,  Genealogy  of  the  Greenieaf 
Family,  pp.  426-423. 

2  Captain  Michael  Hodge,  a  sea-captain  previous  to  the  War  of  Independence  ; 
one  of  the  founders  of  the  Marine  Society  of  Newburyport  in  1772,  its  secretary 
fi)r  twenty-si.x  years  and  its  president  for  six;  appointed  in  1770  naval  ofScer  of 
Newburyport,  and  probably  held  office  until  1780;  appointed  in  1789  surveyor 
of  the  naval  district  which  included  Newburyport,  Salisbury,  Amesbury  and 
Haverhill;  held  this  office  until  his  death,  June  24,  1816.  A  member  of  the 
First  Parish  Church,  he  read  the  Declaration  of  Independence  from  the  window 
of  its  meeting-house  to  the  people  gatliered  in  Market  Square  below  ;  was  active 
in  fortifying  the  mouth  of  the  Merrimac  River,  in  1775  one  of  six  captains  of  guns 
for  the  protection  of  the  port;  1778  first  lieutenant  of  the  Newburyport  (inde- 
pendent) Artillery  Company  ;  on  the  staff  of  General  Jonathan  (Clover,  of  .Marble- 
head,  in  the  expedition  to  Rhode  Island  in  1778  ;  town  clerk  1780-1789  ;  selectman 
1783-1785;  died  June  24,  1816,  aged  seventy-three.  Hurd,  Hist,  of  Essex  County, 
pp.  1750-1753;  Two  Hundred  and  Fiftieth  Celebration  of  the  Town,  p.  98. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  99 

inclined  to  flattery,  a  defect  not  uncommon  among  our  young  ladies ; ' 
and  I  answered  her  in  her  own  way,  as  I  always  do.  When  a  lady 
pays  me  a  coraplimeut  I  always  consider  myself  indebted  to  her  untill 
I  return  one  at  least  of  equal  value;  and  I  am  generally  so  good  a 
creditor  that  I  pay  with  large  interest.  I  have  even  once  or  twice  in 
my  life  so  far  surpassed  a  lady  in  that  way  as  to  silence  her,  and  make 
her  ashamed  of  attacking  me  with  those  weapons ;  but  I  never  flatter 
a  lady  that  I  esteem. 

17th.  Parson  Carey  is  very  sick;  and  consequently  we  had  no 
meeting.  So  I  staid  at  home  ;  wrote  a  long  letter  to  my  friend  Fiske,^ 
and  a  page  or  two  some  ways  back  in  this  book.  In  the  evening  I 
went  to  Mrs.  Hooper's  to  see  Townsend,  whom  I  found  very  hoarse,  and 
with  a  bad  cough.  I  pass'd  the  evening  there,  as  likewise  did  Mr.  S. 
Cutler.  "Within  these  two  years  Townsend  has  lost  two  brothers  and  a 
sister  by  consumptions,  and  it  is  much  to  be  feared  that  he  himself 
will  be  subject  to  the  same  misfortune.  I  am  in  hopes,  however,  that 
by  their  fate  he  will  be  warn'd  to  take  such  care  of  himself  as  will 
preserve  his  life  and  lengthen  his  days  ;  for  I  feel  a  great  degree  of 
friendship  for  him.'* 

18th.    After  passing  the  day  at  the   office,  I  went  and  pass'd  the 

1  "Oliver  Fiske  of  Brookfield  will  be  twenty-five  the  2il  of  Septr.  next. 
Solidity  of  judgment,  independence  of  spirit,  and  candour  of  disposition  are  the 
cliief  characteristics  of  tliis  gentleman.  As  a  scholar  he  stands  on  the  first  line 
in  the  class,  and  his  honour  is  unblemished.  His  circumstances  are  not  fortunate, 
and  he  has  been  often  absent  from  College.  He  was  with  General  Lincoln  in 
Berkshire  the  greater  part  of  the  last  winter,  and  wishes  to  follow  a  military  life 
after  leaving  the  University.  He  would  make,  I  believe,  a  very  good  oflScer,  and 
whatever  his  profession  may  be,  he  will  be  certainly  an  excellent  man."  J.  Q. 
Adams,  March  25,1787.  Dr.  Oliver  Fiske  (H.  C.  1787),  son  of  Rev.  Nathan 
Fiske,  D.D.  (II.  C.  1754),  pastor  of  the  church  in  Brookfield  (1758-1799)  ;  born 
September  2,  17G2;  volunteered  for  service  in  the  war,  in  1780,  and  was  stationed 
near  West  Point  at  the  time  of  the  treason  of  Benedict  Arnold  ;  returned  to 
Brookfield  and  assisted  his  father  on  his  farm  until  1783;  at  the  time  of  Shays's 
Rebellion,  active  in  the  Marti-Mercurian  Band  of  University  students ;  in  the 
winter  vacation  of  1786-1787  engaged  to  teach  school  at  Lincoln,  but  when  the 
insurgents  interfered  with  the  courts  at  Worcester  hired  a  substitute  and  joined 
General  Lincoln's  army;  studied  medicine  under  Dr.  Atherton,  of  Lnncaster; 
began  practice  at  Worcester  October,  1790 ;  active  in  forming  the  Worcester 
Medical  Society,  and  was  chosen  its  secretary.  A  petition  to  the  Legislature  for 
incorporation  led  to  a  reorganization  of  tlie  Massachusetts  Medical  Society  and 
the  creation  of  district  associations ;  September  26,  1804,  the  Worcester  District 
Society  was  organized;  1806  Dr.  Fiske  chosen  President;  February,  1803, 
appointed  Special  Judge  of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas  ;  1809-1814  member  of 
the  Executive  Council ;  1816-1821  Registrar  of  Deeds  ;  interested  in  agriculture, 
planting  a  nursery  of  fruit  and  ornamental  trees  ;  Secretary  of  the  Worcester 
Agricultural  Society  ;  1815  Corresponding  Secretary  of  the  Linnaean  Society  of 
New  England  ;  Councillor  of  the  American  Antiquarian  Society  ;  died  in  Boston 
January  25, 1837.     F.  C  Pierce,  Fiske  and  Fisk  Family  (1896),  pp.  .372,  373, 495. 

2  Townsend  died  in  1826,  aged  sixty-three. 


100  DIARY   OP  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

evenin"'  at  Mrs.  Hooper's.  Townsend's  cough  hangs  upon  him,  but  he 
is  getting  better.  We  play'd  quadrille  till  supper  time.  Miss  Knight 
is  still  there ;  she  is  very  handsome  and  very  amiable,  yet  not  very 
interesting. 

19th.  Called  upon  Putnam  after  leaving  the  office,  and  passed  the 
evening  at  his  lodgings.  I  have  a  greater  regard  for  this  young  fellow 
than  I  had  when  at  College.  He  is  friendly  and  good-natured,  and 
pursues  his  studies  with  diligence  and  attention.  Perhaps  indeed  that 
now  the  warmth  of  emulation  has  subsided,  and  we  can  in  no  instance 
be  rivals,  neither  he  nor  I  view  each  other  in  the  same  light  that  we 
did  nine  months  ago. 

20th.  Mr.  Parsons  went  yesterday  to  Boston,  to  attend  the  Supreme 
Judicial  Court.  This  evening  I  past  with  Thompson  at  Mrs.  Emery's. 
Miss  Smith  and  Miss  Putnam  were  there.  We  play'd  cards  about  an 
hour ;  after  which  Miss  Emery  play'd  us  a  number  of  tunes  very 
agreeably  upon  the  harpsichord.  I  had  another  match  w^ith  Miss 
Putnam  at  complimenting,  and  succeeded  tolerably  well. 

21st.  Mrs.  Emery  and  her  daughter  were  going  to  Exeter  this  morn- 
ing in  a  single  sleigh.  Dr.  Kilham  and  I,  after  greatly  debating  the 
question,  had  likewise  determined  to  go :  so  we  agreed  to  divide.  The 
Doctor  went  with  Mrs.  Emery,  and  I  with  the  young  lady.  It  was 
just  eleven  o'clock  vphen  we  started;  and  the  roads  were  so  difficult 
that  we  did  not  get  to  Exeter  till  three,  nor  the  other  sleigh  till  five. 
After  sitting  down  my  companion  I  went  and  dined ;  and  then  immedi- 
ately proceeded  to  the  meeting-house  where  the  State  Convention  for 
the  State  of  New  Hampshire  were  debating  upon  the  subject  of  the 
Federal  Constitution.  I  found  Mr.  Pickering,^  a  member  from  Ports- 
mouth, zealously,  though  I  cannot  add  very  forcibly,  arguing  for  the 
good  cause.  Several  other  members  spoke ;  but  none  of  them,  in  my 
opinion,  much  to  the  purpose.  They  have  gone  through  the  system  by 
paragraphs  ;  and  are  now  considering  it  generally.  I  found  Mr.  Shaw, 
Mr.  Thaxter,  and  a  number  more  of  our  Haverhill  friends  there,  and 
pass'd  the  evening  with  them  at  Mr.  Peabody's,  a  friend  of  the 
Doctor's,  where  we  lodg'd ;  for  there  was  not  a  bed  to  be  had  at  any 
of  the  public  houses.  We  were  disappointed  of  an  assembly  this  even- 
ing as  we  expected ;  and  the  debates,  I  really  think,  were  not  worth 
the  ride  in  a  cold  day ;  but  the  satisfaction  of  riding  with  an  amiable 
girl,  and  the  novelty  of  the  town,  which  I  never  saw  before,  will  in 
some  measure  compensate  for  the  failure  of  my  expectations. 

1  John  Pickering  (H.  C.  1761),  born  in  Newington  September  22, 1737  ;  studied 
theology  and  law;  Attorney-General  of  New  Hampsliire  1786;  member  of  the 
State  Convention  1791-1792  ;  repeatedly  a  member  of  the  Legislature  ;  President  of 
the  Senate  in  1789;  1790  appointed  Chief  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  New 
Hampshire  ;  later  District  Judge  of  the  United  States ;  died  April,  1805.  New 
Hampshire  Prov.  and  State  Papers,  vol.  x.  p.  30. 


DIAEY  OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  101 

22d.  I  attended  to  hear  the  debates  in  Convention  again  this  fore- 
noon. Mr.  Langdou  ^  began  by  making  a  motion  that  the  Convention 
should  adjourn  to  some  future  day,  but  said  he  would  waive  his 
motion  if  any  gentleman  had  further  observations  to  make  upon  the 
system.  Mr.  Atherton,^  the  leader  of  the  opposition  rose,  and  in  a 
speech  of  more  than  au  hour  recapitulated  every  objection  that  he  could 
invent  against  the  Constitution.  He  observed  that  confederation  was 
derived  from  the  Latin  word  foedus ;  and  that  consolidation  was  a 
metaphorical  expression  borrowed  from  the  operations  of  chemistry. 
These  were  two  of  his  most  ingenious  ideas  ;  and,  upon  the  whole,  I  think, 
he  may  candidly  be  pronounced  a  miserable  speaker,  and  a  worse 
reasoner.  A  reverend  Parson  Thirston^  spoke  as  long,  and  as  little  to 
the  purpose,  on  the  other  side.  He  talk'd  of  France's  demanding  her 
money  with  the  dagger  in  her  hand ;  and  of  Britain's  sending  50  sail 
of  the  line  and  60,000  men  to  take  New  Hampshire ;  but  did  not 
even  attempt  to  support  the  plan  upon  the  fair  and  honourable  basis  of 
rational  argumentation.  When  these  two  gentlemen  had  exhausted 
the  resources  of  their  lungs,  the  motion  for  an  adjournment  was  again 
brought  upon  the  carpet.  This  was  the  offspring  of  the  fears  of  the 
Federal  party ;  and  was  faintly  opposed  by  the  other  faction,  who 
appeared  to  be  equally  fearful  of  the  event,  though  more  confident  in 
their  numbers.  The  vote  for  adjournment,  however,  was  carried  by  a 
trifling  majority.  The  time  and  place  at  which  they  should  meet 
again  was  a  subject  of  some  conversation;  but  finally  the  third  Wednes- 
day in  June,  and  Concord  were  agreed  upon.  We  dined  at  Mr. 
Peabody's.  Dr.  Kilham  was  troubled  with  the  impertinence  of  one 
Hopkiuson,  a  distracted  fellow,  who  came  and  pretended  to  call  him  to 
an  account  for  coming  and  intermeddling  with  concerns  in  which  he  was 
not  interested.     A  little  after  three  we  got  into  the  sleigh,  and  be- 

1  John  Langdon  (1740-1819),  leader  of  the  Federal  forces  in  the  Convention  ; 
one  of  the  most  noted  men  of  New  Hampsliire,  having  served  as  delegate  to  the 
Continental  Congress,  as  Speaker  in  the  House  of  Representatives  of  New  Hamp- 
Bhire,  as  a  Judge,  as  a  member  of  the  State  Senate,  and  as  "president"  of  the 
State.  Later  was  the  first  President  pro  tern,  of  tlie  United  States  Senate  and 
Governor  of  New  Hampshire.  See  J.  B.  Walker,  Hist,  of  the  New  Hampshire 
Convention,  pp.  7,  29 ;  also  letter  from  John  Langdon  to  Rufus  King,  dated 
February  23,  1788,  in  Bancroft,  Hist,  of  the  Constitution,  vol.  ii.  pp.  461,  462. 
Some  members,  convinced  that  ratification  was  wise  but  unwilling  to  vote  con- 
trary to  their  instructions,  asked  an  adjournment. 

2  Joshua  Atherton  (H.  C.  1762),  born  in  Harvard,  Mass.,  in  1737;  a 
lawyer  at  Amherst  in  1772;  was  imprisoned  in  Amlierst  jail  for  favoring  the 
Loyalists,  but  later  regained  the  confidence  of  the  community.  In  1793  was  a 
State  Senator,  and  later  Attorney-General  of  New  Hampshire;  died  April  3,  1809. 
New  Hampshire  Prov.  and  State  Papers,  vol.  x.  p.  35. 

8  llev.  Benjamin  Thurston  (H.  C.  1774)  ;  ordained  at  North  Hampton,  N.  H,, 
November  2,  1785;  dismissed  October  27,  1800;  died  1806,  near  Raleigh,  N.  C. 
J.  B.  Walker,  Hist,  of  the  New  Hampshire  Convention,  p.  9. 


102  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

tween  six  and  seven  cross'd  the  river  from  Salisbury.  I  immediately 
went  to  Thompson's.  I  found  Little  there,  and  Putnam  came  in  soon 
after.  We  pass'd  the  evening  in  sociable  chat  till  nine,  when  I  returned 
Lome. 

23d.  When  I  went  to  the  office  this  morning  I  found  young  Pick- 
man  '  of  Salem  there.  I  was  acquainted  with  him  somewhat  in  Europe, 
and  I  believe  he  is  mentioned  in  the  first  volume  of  this  repository 
(repository !)  He  has  been  studying  more  than  two  years  in  Mr. 
Pynchon's  '^  office,  and  proposes  now  to  pass  five  or  six  months  in  Mr. 
Parsons's.  And  I  shall  be  very  happy  in  this  additional  companion,  as 
Townsend  and  Amory  are  both  soon  to  leave  the  town.  I  pass'd  the 
evening  at  home,  and  my  friend  Little  spent  it  with  me.  Wrote 
nothing,  though  it  was  very  necessary. 

24th.  Mr.  Carey  is  still  very  sick,  and  we  had  no  divine  service  thi3 
day  at  his  meeting.  I  again  pass'd  the  whole  day  at  home.  I  was 
tired  in  the  evening  and  took  a  walk  as  far  as  Deacon  Thompson's ; 
and  desired  Tom  to  come  and  pass  an  hour  with  me,  which  he  did.  I 
called  at  Putnam's  but  he  was  not  at  home.  I  wrote  diligently  in 
the  course  of  the  day,  and  acquired  some  little  credit. 

25th.  Pass'd  the  evening  at  Merrill's  with  Mr,  Hutchinson,  and 
had  some  very  agreeable  musical  entertainment.  Mr.  H.  is  a  performer 
upon  the  flute,  and  has  a  good  collection  of  books.  He  has  been  wait- 
ing a  fortnight  or  three  weeks  for  favorable  winds  to  sail  for  Ireland. 
Captain  Cazneau  and  Captain  Casey  were  there  part  of  the  evening. 

26th.  This  forenoon,  while  I  was  at  the  office,  I  received  a  billet 
from  Mr.  Dalton,  with  an  invitation  to  spend  the  evening  at  his  house. 
Between  six  and  seven  I  went,  and  was  introduced  into  a  room  full  of 
ladies,  with  no  other  gentleman  but  the  master  of  the  house.  The 
situation  was  not  perfectly  agreeable  ;  but  I  was  relieved  by  a  proposal 
of  cards.  I  sat  down  to  a  game  of  whist  with  Mrs.  Jones,  a  lady  from 
Boston,  Mrs.  Marquaud  ^  and  Fanny  Jenkins,  who  soon  after  resigned 

1  Benjamin  Pickman  (H.  C.  1784),  son  of  Colonel  Benjamin  Pickraan,  a  suc- 
cessful merchant  of  Salem ;  born  September  30,  1763,  in  Salem ;  educated  at 
Dummer  Academy  under  "  Master  Moody";  did  not  practise  law,  but  engaged 
in  commerce;  was  a  Representative  and  a  Senator  in  the  Massachusetts  Legis- 
lature ;  a  member  of  the  Governor's  Council,  1805;  of  the  Constitutional  Con- 
vention  of  1820,  and  of  Congress,  1809-1811  ;  an  Overseer  at  Harvard,  1810- 
1818,  and  president  of  many  historical  and  literary  societies  in  Salem  ;  died 
August  16,  1843.  He  married,  October  20,  1789,  Anstiss  Derby,  daughter  of 
Elias  H.  Derby,  the  most  eminent  merchant  in  Salem.     Ilurd,  248  b. 

2  William  Pynchon  (H.  C.  1743),  born  in  Springfield,  Mass.,  December  12, 
1723;  studied  law  with  Stephen  Sewall,  of  S;ilem  ;  died  in  Salem  March  14, 
1789.     W.  T.  Davis,  Hist,  of  the  Judiciary  of  Massachusetts,  p.  300. 

8  Presumably  the  wife  of  Joseph  Marquand,  one  of  the  most  prominent  mer- 
chants in  Newburyport.  He  fitted  out  privateers  during  the  war  and  took  several 
prizes,  with  one  of  them,  it  is  said,  the  library  of  the  Governor- General  of  Can- 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  103 

her  seat  to  Miss  Dalton,  emphatically  so  called  even  by  her  parents, 
which  is  rather  unusual^  but  a  custom  which  is  claiming  introduction. 
Major  Greenleaf  and  Mr.  Hooper^  came  in  before  supper,  which  was  at 
about  ten  o'clock,  and  which  was  formal,  cerimonious,  and  consequently 
elegant.  The  company  gradually  retired  after  supper,  and  between 
eleven  and  twelve  Mr.  Hooper  gave  me  a  place  in  his  sleigh  and  I 
came  home.  The  narrative  is  about  as  uninteresting  as  the  scene.  I 
found  myself  in  the  midst  of  a  large  company  of  ladies,  with  none  of 
whom  I  had  an  acquaintance  sufficient  to  warrant  an  agreeable  famil- 
iarity. I  soon  got  seated  at  a  card  table,  with  ladies  whom  I  did  not 
sufficiently  admire.  Mrs.  Jones  is  young,  uncommonly  handsome ;  and, 
having  received  her  education  in  Europe,  is  the  arbiter  of  taste  and 
propriety  in  the  complicated  science  of  female  fashions.  To  be  insen- 
sible to  all  these  advantages  would  have  the  appearance  of  stupidity  or 
of  ingratitude  ;  and  Mrs.  Jones  takes  every  opportunity  to  show  how 
free  she  is  from  such  vices.  Soon  after  we  sat  down  she  complained 
that  her  gloves  pinched  her  arm  excessively ;  and  with  some  difficulty 
pulling  one  of  them  off  she  exhibited  an  arm,  the  beautiful  contour 
and  snowy  whiteness  of  which  might  fire  the  imagination  of  a  sensual 
voluptuary,  but  which  I  unfortunately  did  not  think  of  admiring  till  it 
was  too  late.  On  the  fore-finger  of  the  hand  sparkled  a  costly  dia- 
mond, which  demanded  its  share  of  observation  ;  and  perhaps  in  the 
mind  of  a  polite  spectator  might  revive  a  question  often  debated, 
upon  the  mutual  pretensions  of  nature  and  of  art  to  the  superiority 
of  beauty.  Mrs.  Marquand  equally  professes  to  dictate  the  laws  of 
fashion,  but  could  not  stand  her  ground  against  the  irresistible  power 
of  the  other  lady,  who  could  silence  her  in  a  moment  by  the  resources 
which  she  drew  from  her  English  education.  Miss  Jenkins,  she  ob- 
served, looked  very  much  like  Mrs.  Siddotis  ;  and  if  there  is  in  fact  not 
the  n^ost  distant  likeness,  yet  the  remark  might  convince  us  that  IMrs. 
Jones  had  seen  that  justly  celebrated  actress.  The  only  particular  in 
which  she  varies  from  the  manners  of  the  English  ladies  is  in  her 
ardent  affiiction  for  her  husband.  He  left  her  here  yesterday,  being 
called  by  his  business  to  Boston,  but  is  expected  here  again  to-morrow. 
Yet  though  this  absence  is  so  short,  yet  she  could  not  hear  his  name 
mentioned  without  fetching  a  deep  sigh.  She  anxiously  enquired  for 
an  opportunity  to  send  a  letter  to  him;  and  when  somebody  impru- 
dently suggested  that  perhaps  Mr.  Jones  would  not  return  till  Thurs- 

ada  en  route  for  England  ;  lived  in  a  fine  house  at  the  head  of  Marquand's  wharf; 
collector  of  the  port  of  Newburyport,  1811-1820;  died  September  6,  1820,  aged 
eeventy-two.  J.  J.  Currier,  "  Quid  Newbury,"  pp.  162,  608,710;  Hurd,  Hist,  of 
Essex  County,  pp.  1748,  1750;  S.  A.  Emery,  Reminiscences,  etc.,  pp.  232,  234. 

1  Stephen  Hooper  (H.  C.  1761),  brother  of  Mrs.  Dalton  ;  son  of  Robert  Hooper,  a 
wealthy  merchant  of  Marblehead,  l)orn  July  14, 1741  ;  died  January,  1802,  in  New- 
bury.   He  was  elected  as  a  Federalist  to  tlie  Massachusetts  Senate  in  1815  and  1816. 


104  DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

day,  she  held  her  handkerchief  to  her  eyes  to  conceal  the  involuntary 
tear  which  was  undoubtedly  excited  by  the  distressing  idea.  A 
number  of  other  circumstances,  similar  to  those  related,  concurred  to 
form  the  opinion  which  I  entertain  of  Mrs.  Jones's  character,  and  these 
anecdotes  may  exhibit  it  perhaps  better  than  the  most  laboured  descrip- 
tion that  I  could  write.  This  lady  has  taken  so  much  of  my  time  and 
of  my  volume  that  I  must  really  wait  for  other  opportunities  to  speak 
of  the  other  ladies,  wlio  were  Judge  Greenleaf's  daughters,  Miss  Prince 
and  Miss  Derby,  Mrs.  Coffin,  and  Miss  S.  Jenkins,  besides  Mr. 
Dalton's  own  daughters,^  who  tell  up  well. 

27th.  Mr.  Hutcliinson  sailed  yesterday  for  Ireland.  The  weather 
for  several  days  past  has  been  quite  moderate ;  but  this  afternoon  blew 
up  very  cold  again.  I  pass'd  the  evening  with  Townsend  and  Pickmaa 
at  Dr.  Sawyer's.^  Play'd  quadrill  with  Mrs.  Sawyer  and  Mrs.  Hay. 
The  family  is  very  agreeable. 

28th.  The  severity  of  the  weather  has  been  increasing,  and  is  this 
night  but  little  inferior  to  the  greatest  extremities  of  the  winter.  Our 
social  club  met  this  evening  at  Little's.  The  walk  was  rather  long  and 
bleak ;  but  our  enjoyment  was  suthcient  to  compensate  for  that.  Not- 
withstanding Mrs.  Jones's  opinion,  I  confess  I  do  not  dislike  clubs. 
I  think  they  may  be  sociable  and  friendly  without  being  slavish. 

29th.  A  number  of  us  spent  tlie  evening  at  Dr.  Swett's.  I  play'd 
on  the  flute  an  hour  or  so.  I  have  heretofore  mentioned  Mrs.  Swett. 
The  Doctor  perhaps  may  come  under  the  denomination  of  a  reformed 
rake.  In  his  youth  he  was  wild,  but  he  has  become  quite  a  useful 
man.     Such  instances  are  rare  ! 

Saturday,  March  1st,  1788. 

The  weather  is  very  severe.  The  month  comes  in  like  a  lion,  and 
according  to  the  farmer's  proverb  it  must  go  out  like  a  lamb.  I  passed 
my  evening  in  contemplation  and  in  writing  at  home,  and  have  very 
little  to  say  for  this  day. 

1  Ruth  Hooper  Dalton,  born  May  17,  17G7,  married,  July  21,  1789,  Louis 
Deblois ;  Mary,  born  March  4, 1771,  married  Leonard  Wliite,  of  Haverhill,  August 
21,  1794;  Sarah,  born  February  19,  1775,  died  unmarried  in  Washington,  D.  C. ; 
Catherine,  born  April  13, 1777,  died  in  Alexandria,  Va.,  unmarried.  G.  T.  Little, 
The  Descendants  of  George  Little,  p.  26. 

2  Dr.  Micajah  Sawyer  (H.  C.  1756),  son  of  a  physician  in  Newbury,  brother- 
in-law  of  Rev.  Ezra  Weld,  of  Braintree  ;  born  July,  17o7;  married  Sibyl,  daugh- 
ter of  Daniel  Farnham,  the  Loyalist ;  member  of  tiie  Committee  of  Safety  ap- 
pointed in  1774;  treasurer  of  Dummer  Academy  1784-1809;  member  of  the 
American  Academy  of  Arts  and  Sciences  and  of  the  Massachusetts  Medical 
Society ;  died  September  29,  1815.  Mrs.  Sawyer  died  July  8,  1842,  aged  ninety- 
five.  Thacher,  American  Medical  Biography,  vol.  ii.  pp.  72-74;  Appleton, 
Some  Descendants  of  William  Sawyer. 


DIARY  OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  105 

2cl.  "We  had  no  meeting  at  Parson  Carey's.  I  was  employ'd  in 
writing  all  the  forenoon  ;  but  after  dinner  went  to  hear  Mr.  Spring. 
The  speculative  sentiments  of  this  gentleman  upon  religion  are  not 
such  as  I  should  admire.  They  may,  I  think,  safely  be  called  illiberal ; 
though  I  am  sensible  such  charges  are  not  in  general  very  liberal. 
He  has  adopted  all  the  fancies  of  the  Hopkintonian  ^  sect,  as  they  are 
called.  These  people,  vs^hile  they  profess  to  found  their  system  entirely 
upon  disinterested  benevolence,  by  what  appears  to  me  a  strange  incon- 
sistency suppose  that  it  may  be  agreeable  to  the  general  plan  of  the 
supreme  being  to  condemn  to  eternal  torments  all  the  human  race, 
except  snch  as  have  experienced  the  effect  of  saving  grace.  The  point 
upon  which  Mr.  Spring  continually  harps  is,  that  holiness  consists  in  a 
total  exemption  from  all  selfish  ideas,  and  that  all  sin  originates  in 
selfishness.  I  suppose  he  has  not  preach'd  a  sermon  these  ten  years 
without  introducing  these  favorite  sentiments.  His  repetitions  are  so 
frequent  that  they  become  very  tiresome  to  one  whom  they  cannot 
convince.  But  his  delivery  is  very  agreeable ;  there  is  an  earnestness 
and  a  solemnity  in  his  manner  which  I  wish  I  could  find  in  preachers 
whose  doctrines  are  more  conformable  to  my  ideas  of  truth. 

3d.  The  weather  continues  extreme  cold.  The  river  is  fast  as  low 
as  this  town,  and  many  persons  have  this  day  cross'd  it  upon  the  ice. 
Townsend  set  out  to  go  with  me  this  evening  to  Mrs.  Emery's  ;  but 
would  not  go  in  when  he  found  there  was  company  there.  It  was 
Judge  Greeuleafs  family.  We  play'd  at  cards  and  back-gammon  as 
usual ;  and  between  ten  and  eleven  I  came  home.  Miss  Prince  is  not 
handsome,  but  sociable.  She  is  generally  called  sensible  and  very  agree- 
able ;  but  I  have  imbibed  an  unaccountable  prejudice  unfavourable  to 
her  from  the  appearance  of  her  person  and  manners.  Perhaps  I 
ought  not  to  commit  such  a  weakness  to  writing;  but  indeed  it  is  a 
weakness  from  which,  I  believe,  very  few  persons  can  boast  of  being 
free.  Miss  Derby  is  handsome,  but  lier  beauty  is  stern  and  forbidding. 
She  is  reserved  and  unsociable ;  her  manners  are  not  wholly  exempt 
from  the  appearance  of  pride.  But  the  effects  of  this  passion,  and  of 
modest  dithdence,  so  different  from  it,  are  similar  in  appearance,  and 
when  the  causes  of  conduct  may  be  various  the  most  favourable  con- 
struction is  always  the  best.     The  Miss  Greeuleafs  — 

4th.    Doctor  Kilham  ^  went  to  Boston  this  day  to  attend  the  General 

1  This  is  an  obvious  slip  of  the  pen  for  "  Hopkinsian,"  the  name  given  to  the 
followers  of  Dr.  Samuel  Hopkins,  pastor  at  Newport,  R.  I.  (1770-1803). 

2  Dr.  Killiam  failed  of  re-election ;  the  following  year,  1789,  an  unsuccessful 
movement  was  again  made  in  his  favor.  Its  first  stages  are  described  in  a  letter 
dated  February  28, 1789,  from  James  Bridge,  then  a  law  student  with  Tlieophilus 
Parsons,  to  J.  Q.  Adams,  who  was  recuperating  his  health  at  Quincy.  "  The 
attention  of  the  wise  heads  begins  to  be  turned  pretty  strongly  towards  the 
approaching  elections.     The  Hancockonians  are  bestirring  themselves  to  get 

14 


106  DIARY   OF   JOHN    QUINCY   ADAMS. 

Court.  His  opposition  to  the  Federal  Constitution  has  made  him  so 
unpopular  in  this  town  that  I  do  not  expect  he  will  be  chosen  as  Repre- 
sentative at  the  next  election  ;  and  he  may,  I  think,  with  this  session 
take  his  leave  of  the  legislative  body  for  the  present.  I  pass'd  the 
evening  with  Townsend  and  Thompson  at  Mrs.  Atkins's.  The  Justice 
was  not  at  home.  Between  seven  and  eight  o'clock,  we  were  alarm'd 
by  the  cry  of  fire ;  but  it  was  extinguished  before  we  got  to  the  house. 
While  tlie  Doctor  is  absent,  I  shall  read  more  than  1  can  when  he  is 
here.  The  intervals  between  the  hours  which  I  pass  at  the  office  I 
usually  spend  in  conversation  with  him ;  when  he  is  gone  I  devote 
them  to  reading.  I  have  taken  up  the  second  volume  of  Gibbon, 
which  I  have  for  a  long  time  laid  aside ;  and  I  am  determined  to  try 
again  to  get  through  this  book.  I  have  possessed  it  several  years,  and 
have  been  all  the  time  just  about  to  read  it ;  but  it  has  been  like  the 
hinge  of  Tristram  Shandy's  door  —  never  done,  because  it  could  be 
done  at  any  time. 

5th.  I  pass'd  the  evening  with  Thompson  and  Putnam  at  Mr.  Brad- 
bury's. Frank  came  from  Boston  this  morning,  and  bro't  an  account 
of  the  interment  of  his  Honor  Thomas  Cushing,  Esqr.,  who  died  last 
week.  He  has  been  lieutenant  governor  of  this  Commonwealth  ever 
since  the  establishment  of  the  Constitution  ;  and  it  is  probable  there 
will  be  a  vast  deal  of  electioneering  intrigue  for  the  diverse  candidates 
for  the  place.  The  paper  also  contains  an  extract  from  the  conclud- 
ing letter  of  the  third  volume  in  defence  of  the  American  Constitu- 
tions, which  speaks  very  favourably  of  the  system  proposed  by  the 
Federal  Convention.^  I  did  not  expect  it,  and  am  glad  to  find  I  was 
mistaken,  since  it  appears  probable  the  plan  will  be  adopted.  "We  play'd 
cards  an  hour  or  two  and  then  amused  ourselves  with  music.     There 

their  idol  continued  in  the  chair  and  Mr.  S.  Adams  into  Gen.  Lincoln's  office. 
They  intend  also  to  change  their  present  representation  intirely.  Instead  of 
Master  Parsons,  Coombs  and  Marsh,  your  friend  Doc.  Kilham  and  Capt.  Fletcher 
are  held  up  for  election.  Mr.  Jackson,  if  he  is  not  chosen  a  senator,  is  to  be 
made  the  third.  This  inteligence  is  trumpeted  forth  in  the  streets  and  market 
places  by  Stickney,  Sweeny  the  barber,  and  Billings  Putnam.  The  opposite 
party  are  lying  upon  their  oars,  in  expectation  of  our  master's  return.  Doc. 
Kilham's  political  resurrection  might  have  furnished  you  with  an  entertaining 
subject  of  speculation.  He  was  first  seen  riding  out  with  Marquand,  next  he 
rode  out  with  a  large  party  of  us  to  Mnjor  Coffin's  of  New-town  ;  soon  after  some 
of  our  respectable  folks  were  seen  to  pull  off  their  hats  to  him  as  he  pass'd  the 
insurance  office.  Col.  Wiggiesworth  and  some  others  got  him  to  their  houses 
next,  and  now  'twould  be  difficult  to  catch  him  at  home.  He  wants  no  further 
assistance,  but  to  be  puffed  in  the  Essex  Journal  which  you  will  be  seasonably 
here  to  execute,  if  so  inclined."  In  1802  President  Jefferson  appointed  him 
a  Commissioner  of  Bankruptcy  in  Massachusetts;  in  1806,  1807,  1810  and  1811 
he  served  on  the  Governor's  Council,  and  in  1814  was  a  member  of  the  State 
Senate.     See  supm,  pp.  32,  67. 

1  John  Adams,  Works,  vol.  vi.  pp.  219,  220. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUI^'CY   ADAMS.  107 

were  several  young  ladies  present,  Miss  Harriet's  ^  companions ;  a  sett 
that  are  almost  always  together,  and  who  have  at  least  more  personal 
beauty  than  any  equal  number  of  other  unmarried  ladies  in  this  town. 
Miss  AVigglesworth  -  is  about  seventeen.  Her  stature  is  rather  diminu- 
tive ;  but  smallness  is  said  to  be  one  of  the  essential  requisites  of  pretti- 
ness.  Her  features  are  regular  and  iier  shape  admirably  proportioned. 
Her  disposition  is  said  to  be  amiable ;  but  she  talks  very  little.  The 
greatest  defect  which  I  have  observed  in  her  is  a  frequent  smile, 
which  is  certainly  either  unmeaning  or  insulting.  The  only  method  I 
can  pursue  when  I  catch  her  eye  is  to  smile  too ;  and  by  this  means 
put  her  out  of  countenance.  Thus  much  for  the  present.  I  will  take 
some  other  opportunity  to  mention  the  other  stars  that  form  this 
constellation. 

6th.  We  met  in  the  evening  at  Putnam's  chamber.  I  did  not  pass 
my  time  so  agreeably  as  I  usually  do  these  evenings.  Townsend  and 
Amory  were  there,  and,  instead  of  devoting  our  hours  to  free  and  unre- 
strained conversation,  we  lost  them  in  playing  on  the  violin  and  flute. 
Between  nine  and  ten  we  retired. 

7th.  The  weather  begins  to  abate  of  its  severity ;  yet  people  cross'd 
the  river  on  the  ice  all  this  day.  Townsend  and  Pickman  this  after- 
noon went  to  Salem.  I  was  at  home  all  the  evening,  and  Thompson 
spent  part  of  it  with  me.  He  intends  to  quit  his  school  in  three  or 
four  weeks ;  and  I  hope  I  shall  then  enjoy  more  of  his  company. 

8th.  I  this  day  got  through  my  folio  of  Lord  Coke,  which  has 
been  hanging  heavy  upon  me  these  ten  weeks.  It  contains  a  vast  deal 
of  law  learning,  but  heaped  up  in  such  an  incoherent  mass  that  I 
have  derived  very  little  benefit  from  it,  —  indeed  I  think  it  a  very  im- 
proper book  to  put  into  the  hands  of  a  student  just  entering  upon  the 
acquisition  of  the  profession.  I  am  persuaded  I  might  have  spent  the 
time  which  has  been  employ'd  in  reading  this  book  to  much  better 
advantage,  and  that  a  twelvemonth  hence  I  could  have  read  it  in  less 
time  and  with  more  profit.  But  if  this  be  the  case  how  much  more 
laborious  must  the  study  have  been  when  this  was  the  only  elementary 
book  of  the  profession.  The  addition  of  Wood's  Institutes,  and  more 
especially  of  Blackstone's  Commentaries,  has  been  an  inestimable  ad- 
vantage to  the  late  students  in  the  profession.  In  the  afternoon  I 
read  a  few  pages  in  Blackstone/  and  the  contrast  was  like  descending 

1  Harriet  Bradbury,  daughter  of  Theophilus  Bradbury ;  born  in  1773;  married 
Thomas  W.  Hooper  (H.  C.  1789),  son  of  Stephen  Hooper.  W.  B.  Laphara, 
Bradbury  Memorial,  p.  89. 

2  Presumably  Sarah,  daughter  of  Colonel  Edward  Wigglesvvorth,  born  De- 
cember 18,  1770;  married  Francis  Michael  Bequet,  September  18, 1793.  Colonel 
Wigglesworth  (H.  C.  1761)  served  as  a  colonel  in  the  Continental  army  from 
1776  to  1779,  and  was  then  a  merchant  at  Newburyport. 

*  The  recoguition  of  Blackstone's  merit  was  immediate  and  decisive.    Coke- 


108  DIAKY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

from  a  rugged,  dangerous  and  almost  inaccessible  mountain  into  a 
beautiful  plain,  where  the  unbounded  prospect  on  every  side  presents 
the  appearance  of  fertility.  I  read  with  more  advantage  than  usual, 
as  I  was  wholly  alone  in  the  office  all  day.  I  spent  the  evening  in  my 
own  room  uninterrupted  by  any  intrusion.  I  proceed  in  the  second 
volume  of  Gibbon,  about  fifty  pages  a  day. 

9th.  Parson  Carey  got  out  to  meeting  this  forenoon  ;  but  he  was 
still  so  weak  that  the  effort  was  too  great.  He  was  scarcely  able  to  get 
through  the  morning  exercises ;  and  in  the  afternoon  the  church  was 
again  destitute.  I  went  to  hear  Parson  Spring  rattle  away  upon  disin- 
terested benevolence,  and  pass'd  the  evening  at  home. 

10th.  Pass'd  the  evening  and  supped  with  Thompson  at  Dr. 
Sawyer's.  Mr.  Russell  was  there ;  he  came  from  Portsmouth  this 
morning  and  returns  to  Boston  with  Mrs.  Hay,  to-morrow.  We  play'd 
quadrill.  Mr.  Farnham^  took  an  hand,  and  is  skilled  in  all  the 
trifling  conversation  of  a  card-table.  Every  one,  it  is  said,  possesses  his 
peculiar  excellence.  Mr.  Farnham's  talent  lies  in  the  science  of  polite- 
ness. He  understands  to  perfection  all  the  nice  and  subtle  distinctions 
between  confidence  and  assurance,  between  ease  of  behaviour  and  famil- 
iarity, between  elegance  and  foppery,  &c.,  a  science  in  which  I  am  very 
ignorant,  as  in  all  others. 

11th.  Townsend  and  Pickman  returned  this  afternoon  from  Salem. 
Tovvnsend  has  been  on  to  Boston  and  to  Medfield ;  he  brought  me  two 
or  three  letters.  I  passed  the  evening  with  Thompson  at  Captain 
Coombs's.  Mr.  Cutler  came  in  soon  after  us.  There  are  several 
young  ladies  there.  The  Miss  Coombs's  are  neither  of  them  hand- 
some, and  I  have  not  sufficient  acquaintance  with  them  to  form  an  ac- 
curate opinion.  Fanny  Jenkins  is  perhaps  twenty  one.  A  countenance 
more  amiable  than  beautiful  is  her  greatest  personal  ornament ;  she  is 
not  tall  enough  to  have  an  elegant  form,  but  when  she  smiles  such  a 
lovely  disposition  beams  in  her  eyes  that  no  one  could  wish  her  more 
handsome.  She  talks  much  and  tolerably  well,  but  when  a  young  lady 
[hjas  60  excellent  a  temper, 

"  Let  her  speak  and  whatever  she  say, 
Methinks  I  should  love  her  the  more." 

Her  sister  Nancy  is  about  seventeen.  She  is  tall  and  beautiful  in 
countenance  and  in  the  form  of  a  person,  not  less  sociable  but  less  sensible 

Littleton,  first  published  in  1G28,  did  not  reach  the  thirteenth  edition  until  1788. 
Blackstone  in  1787,  eighteen  years  after  the  publication  of  the  last  volume,  had 
already  passed  through  ten  editions. 

1  Probably  William  Farnhani,  a  brother-in-law  of  Dr.  Sawyer.  Alice  Tucker 
wrote  under  date  of  Sunday,  August  23,  1789,  "After  meeting  Mr.  Farnliani 
drank  tea  with  us— a  gentleman  with  manners  as  soft  as  silk."  Manuscript 
journal. 


DIARY  OF  JOHN   QUINCT   ADAMS.  109 

than  Fanny.  She  has  read  too  many  novels ;  her  expressions  are 
romantic,  and  her  ideas  are  far  otherwise.  Her  disposition  is,  I  believe, 
good;  and  a  few  years  may  cool  her  down  to  an  agreeable  sensible 
girl :  now,  it  may  suffice  to  say,  she  is  young.  But,  after  all,  the  best 
object  of  description  is  Mr.  Cutler.  He  is  somewhat  singular,  but  it  re- 
quires a  much  longer  acquaintance  to  form  a  just  opinion  of  the  char- 
acter of  a  man  than  of  a  woman  :  the  distinguishing  traits  are  deeper 
and  much  more  numerous,  for  which  reason  and  some  others,  I  will 
defer  speaking  of  Mr.  Cutler  to  some  future  opportunity. 

12th.  I  dined  with  Townsend  at  Mrs.  Hooper's.  Amory  went  to 
Portsmouth  on  Monday,  with  several  of  his  friends  They  return'd 
this  day  to  dinner  at  Davenport's.  We  called  to  see  them,  and  sat 
with  them  drinking  and  singing  till  five  o'clock,  when  the[y]  went  for 
Ipswich.  I  pass'd  the  evening  with  Pickman,  at  Doctor  Smith's. 
Townsend  went  there  with  us,  but  found  himself  so  unwell  that  he  went 
home  very  early.  His  cough  has  return'd,  with  several  disagreeable 
symptoms.  I  fear  exceedingly  that  he  is  not  long  for  this  world.  We 
play'd  whist  an  hour  or  two  at  Dr.  Smith's,  and  between  ten  and 
eleven  retired. 

13th,  Thompson,  Pickman  and  Little  pass'd  the  eve  at  my  lodgings. 
Townsend  was  so  unwell  that  he  could  not  come,  and  Putnam  went 
home  some  days  since,  and  has  not  yet  return'd.  The  office  for  a  week 
past  has  been  tolerably  clear,  and  I  have  made  considerable  progress 
in  Blackstone. 

14th.  Mr.  Parsons  return'd  this  afternoon  from  Boston,  where  the 
Supreme  Judicial  Court  and  the  General  Assembly  are  now  sitting.  I 
called  with  Pickman  to  see  Townsend,  who  is  now  confined  to  the 
house,  and  pass'd  an  hour  or  two  with  him.  And  for  this  day  I  have 
nothing  more  to  say. 

15th.  I  called  this  evening  at  Putnam's  lodgings,  and  pass'd  an  hour 
or  two  with  him.  He  went  home  last  Sunday  intending  to  be  absent 
about  a  week ;  but  he  return'd  yesterday  without  corapleating  his  visit. 
I  told  him  some  time  ago,  that  I  expected  he  would  not  be  absent  long 
from  this  town  with  any  satisfaction  to  himself.  He  says  he  is  happy 
as  the  day  is  long.  He  admires  Newbury- Port  exceedingly,  and  never 
enjoy'd  himself  more  than  he  has  for  the  six  months  past.  He  says 
he  is  not  in  love,  and  that  is  not  the  least  reason  from  which  I  con- 
clude that  he  is.  A  young  lady  similar  in  her  manners,  and  perhaps 
in  her  disposition  to  him,  has  engaged  his  affections ;  and  the  schemes 
which  he  forms  to  be  in  company  with  her,  and  the  manifest  fondness 
which  appears  when  he  is  with  her,  more  than  outweigh  his  declara- 
tions ;  which,  in  cases  less  justifiable  than  the  present,  are  not  always 
consistent  with  truth. 

16th.     In  the  forenoon  I  attended  at  Mr.  Carey's  meeting     The  man 


110  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

that  appeared  in  the  pulpit  I  concluded  very  soon  was  a  son  of  Dart- 
mouth. All  was  comniou-place  ;  his  ideas  were  trifling,  his  language  was 
inelegant,  and  his  manner  was  an  unsuccessful  attempt  to  the  florid. 
He  apostrophised  Innocence,  and  said  she  was  charming.  In  short  he 
appeared  to  me  to  have  all  the  defects,  without  one  of  the  excellencies 
of  a  youthful,  irregular  imagination.  After  meeting  was  over  I  heard 
his  name  was  Oliver,'  and  that  he  is  settled  at  Beverley.  I  had  quite 
enough  of  him  in  hearing  him  once,  and  therefore  in  the  afternoon  I 
went  to  hear  Mr.  Spring,  who  entertained  me  much  better,  though  I 
am  not  a  great  admirer  of  his  doctrine. 

17th.  Mr.  Parsons  held  a  Court  this  forenoon  at  ten;  and  at  the 
same  hour  I  attended  at  Mr.  Atkins's,  with  several  actions  brought 
before  him.  Mr.  Parsons  in  the  afternoon  went  from  home  to  return 
to  Boston.  I  pass'd  the  evening  at  Mrs.  Hooper's ;  play'd  quadrill  as 
usual. 

18th.  I  am  sinking  again  into  the  same  insipidity  which  I  have  so 
often  lamented.  The  circumstances  which  daily  occur  are  now  more 
than  ever  alike,  for  I  not  only  spend  the  whole  day  in  the  same  occupa- 
tion at  the  office;  but  as  Townsend  is  unwell  and  confined  to  his  lodg- 
ings I  pass  almost  all  my  evenings  with  him.  We  have  no  news  stir- 
ring of  any  kind,  and  as  Dr.  Kilham  said  to  me  a  short  time  before  he 
went  to  Boston,  "  I  am  tired  to  death  of  seeing  one  day  only  the  dull 
duplicate  of  another." 

19th.  The  weather  was  dull,  gloomy,  and  part  of  the  day  rainy. 
Amory  invited  me  to  dine  with  him  and  Stacey  and  Azor  Orne  at 
Davenport's,  but  I  did  not  feel  inclined  that  way.  I  call'd  at  Mrs. 
Hooper's  in  the  evening,  and  spent  a  couple  of  hours  with  Townsend. 
The  lads  who  dined  at  Davenport's  warm'd  themselves  so  well  with 
JMadeira,  that  at  about  seven  o'clock  this  evening,  they  all  set  out  upon 
an  expedition  to  Cape-Ann  to  attend  a  ball  there  this  night.  Twenty 
seven  miles  in  such  weather  and  such  roads  after  seven  o'clock  at  night, 
to  attend  a  ball  would  look  extravagant  in  a  common  person ;  but  it 
is  quite  characteristic  of  Amory. 

20th.  Thursday.  We  met  this  evening  at  Thompson's.  Pickman 
came,  but  rather  late  in  the  evening.  Young  Sawyer  -  was  there  like- 
wise. He  spends  the  present  quarter  at  home  by  order  of  the  college 
government.  I  have  not  a  very  high  opinion  of  his  abilities ;  still 
less  of  his  improvements,  and  least  of  all  of  his  moral  character.  One 
thing,  however,  may  be  said  in  his  favour, —  he  is  handsome  in  his  per- 

1  Daniel  Oliver  (Dartmouth  1785),  born  in  Boston  April  4,  1753;  pastor  at 
Beverly  1787-1797  ;  missionar}'  in  Roxbury  and  Boston ;  died  September  14, 
1340,  at  Roxbury.     General  Catalogue  of  Dartmouth  College. 

-  William  Sawyer  (II.  C.  1788),  son  of  Dr.  Micajah  Sawyer;  born  February  1, 
1771 ;  a  physician;  died  in  Boston,  April  18,  1859. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  Ill 

son.     His  father  is  a  very  respectable,  worthy  man,  and  the  family  to 

which  he  belongs  is  very  agreeable. 

[N.  B.    This  opinion  of  Sawyer  did  him  great  injustice.     April,  1700.] 

21st.  I  can  read  tolerably  well  when  I  am  alone  in  the  office,  and 
make  as  much  progress  in  one  day  as  I  can  sometimes  in  a  week  when 
all  the  other  gentlemen  are  here.  I  have  read  through  the  first  vol- 
ume and  made  some  progress  in  the  second  of  Blackstone.  And  I 
read  it,  I  think,  with  more  advantage  than  I  did  the  first  time ;  but  my 
progress  is  slow,  too  slow. 

22d.  Amory  and  Stacey  return'd  from  their  expedition.  They  got 
to  Cape-Ann  at  about  twelve  on  "Wednesday  night,  and  were  about  two 
hours  at  the  ball.  On  Thursday  they  proceeded  to  Marblehead,  and 
attended  at  the  assembly  which  was  held  there.  Last  night  they 
patrol'd  the  streets  of  Salem,  serenading  the  houses,  and  came  home 
this  afternoon  compleately  fatigued.  Mr.  Parsons  arrived  in  town  too 
this  morning  from  Boston,  and  held  a  Court  for  taking  cognizance  of 
Mr.  Atkins's  actions.  Pickmau  pass'd  the  evening  with  us  at  Mrs. 
Hooper's.     ]\Ir.    Cutler   was  likewise  there. 

23d.  Putnam  had  agreed  to  go  with  me,  and  hear  Parson  Tucker 
preach  this  forenoon  ;  but  some  circumstance  prevented  him  ;  so  I  went 
alone.  The  Dr.  gave  us  a  very  good  sermon  upon  the  education  of 
children.  I  went  home  with  Mr.  Tracey  to  dinner,  and  Pickman  soon 
came   in.     We   dined   and   pass'd    the    afternoon  with   Mr.  Tracey.^ 

1  Nathaniel  Tracy  (H.  C.  1769),  classmate  of  Tlieophilus  Parsons  and  of 
James  Winthrop,  the  librarian  at  Harvard ;  thirty-six  years  of  age ;  educated  at 
Harvard  and  at  Yale;  son  of  Patrick  Tracy,  who  presented  him  on  his  marriage  in 
1775  to  tlie  beauty,  JMary  Lee,  of  Marbleliead,  with  the  finest  house  in  Newbury- 
port,  the  brick  buihling  on  State  Street  now  occupied  by  tlie  Public  Library. 
In  August,  1775,  he  sent  out  the  first  privateer  from  Newburyport ;  1775-1783 
he  sent  to  sea,  as  principal  owner,  twenty-four  cruisers  manned  by  2,800  men  that 
captured  120  sail  and  witii  them  2,225  prisoners  of  war;  during  the  same  period 
he  sent,  as  principal  owner,  110  merchant  vessels,  all  but  thirteen  of  which 
were  lost  or  captured  before  tlie  end  of  tlie  war;  during  the  early  years  of  the 
Revolution  he  prospered  greatly,  —  had  fine  horses  and  the  richest  of  household 
appointments;  kept  a  pleasure  barge  on  Kimball's  Pond  for  fishing-parties; 
"owned  an  admirable  farm  in  Newbury,  wliere  he  could  breakfast;  Ten-Hill 
farm  at  Medford,  wliere  he  could  dine ;  and  his  Vussall  House  at  Cambridge, 
Washington's  Quarters,  where  he  might  pass  the  night."  Thomas  Jefferson  visited 
him  and  sailed  with  him  on  his  ship  "Ceres"  to  England  in  1781.  In  1786  he 
found  himself  hopelessly  bankrupt,  and  retired  to  the  stone  mansion  (already  a 
century  old)  of  the  Spencer-Pierce  farm  on  the  Merrimac  River  in  Newbury. 
Here  he  died  September  20,  1796  (Mary  Tracy  selling  the  farm  for  S12,800).  See 
J.  J.  Currier,  "  Ould  Newbury,"  pp.  25-41,  551-560,  witli  a  portrait  of  Nathaniel 
Tracy  and  views  of  the  farm-house.  See  also  an  article  by  Colonel  Samuel  Swett 
(son  of  Dr.  John  Barnard  Swett)  in  the  "  Newburyport  Herald,"  November  23, 1805 
(Boston  Public  Library,  No.  *4454.56),  and  an  article  by  Mrs.  Harriet  Prescott 
Spofiford  in  "  Harper's  Magazine  "  for  July,  1875.  The  figures  as  to  his  mercantile 
and  warlike  ventures  during  the  war  are  taken  from  an  ex  parte  statement,  —  a 


112  DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

This  gentleman  was  in  the  course  of  the  war  peculiarly  fortunate 
and  accumulated  an  immense  fortune  ;  but  he  has  since  been  equally 
unluckily  and  is  now  very  much  reduced.  The  generosity  of  his  heart 
is  equal  to  any  estate  whatever ;  and  although  he  has  not  been  so 
prudent  as  might  be  wish'd,  yet  every  one  who  is  acquainted  with  him 
must  lament  his  misfortunes,  and  heartily  wish  he  may  retrieve  his 
affairs.  We  rode  into  town  in  the  beginning  of  the  evening  as  the 
weather  was  rainy.  We  stop'd  at  Mrs.  Hooper's.  We  found  Miss 
Cazneau  there  ;  and  Thompson  and  Putnam  came  in  soon  after.  The 
evening  was  dull.  Miss  Cazneau  would  sing;  and  murdered  two  or 
three  songs.  A  specimen  of  Townseud's  wit  set  us  to  laughing. 
Mr.  Parsons  set  out  this  morning  to  go  to  Boston,  but  the  weather 
being  disagreeable  he  returu'd  home  after  proceeding  three  or  four 
miles.   .   .  . 

24th.  I  attended  at  Mr.  Atkins's  Court;  and  appeared  to  the  ac- 
tions. Mr.  Marquand,  who  had  been  summoned  there,  appeared  and 
somewhat  diverted  us  by  his  impetuosity.  I  met  young  Thomas  in 
the  street,  who  gave  me  some  information  from  Cambridge.  This 
being  the  last  day  of  service,  we  have  been  uncommonly  busy  in 
the  office  in  copying  the  writs  and  making  out  records  according  to  the 
Justice's  act,  which  is  useless  and  even  troublesome  on  every  accou?)t. 
I  this  day  finished  reading  Gibbon's  History,  which  I  have  had  a 
long  time  without  perusing.  It  has  given  me  much  information  upon 
a  part  of  history  with  which  I  was  but  little  acquainted.  The  style  upon 
the  whole,  I  think,  is  elegant,  but  his  manifest  partiality  against  the 
Christian  religion  is  equally  injurious  to  his  character  as  a  philosopher 
and  as  an  historian.  He  affects  to  despise  those  men  who  from  a  zeal- 
ous attachment  to  their  religion  have  adopted  the  effusions  of  enthusi- 
asm as  readily  as  the  pure  and  indisputable  relations  of  history ;  while 
he  is  himself  guilty  of  the  other  extreme,  which  in  my  mind  is  much  less 

petition  to  Congress.  See  E.  V.  Smitli,  Hist,  of  Newburyport,  p.  107.  Alice 
Tucker  wrote,  October  20,  1789 :  "  Just  at  dusk,  I  took  a  walk  to  Mr.  Nat. 
Tracy's.  This  antique  building  is  situated  in  the  very  bosom  of  retirement, 
and  is  surrounded  by  well  cultivated  fields  and  gardens.  You  have  in  view  a 
thick  wood,  and  a  pretty  water  prospect  completes  the  landscape.  I  found  Mrs. 
Tracy,  dress'd  genteelly,  sitting  at  her  tea  table  with  her  children  about  her.  She 
is  a  very  handsome  accomplished  woman,  and  knows  very  well  how  to  keep  up 
her  dignity."  A  little  over  a  year  later  she  described  another  visit :  "As  soon 
as  we  got  to  tlieir  yard  a  neat  looking  maid  came  out  to  open  the  gate  for  us, 
and  conducted  us  into  the  house  and  into  the  dining  chamber,  wliich  is  spacious 
and  has  a  genteel  and  an  airy  appearance  considering  its  antiquity.  Mrs.  Tracy 
received  with  that  politeness  which  is  so  natural  to  a  well  bred  woman.  Our  re- 
past was  slender ;  two  cups  of  tea,  and  one  small  piece  of  biscuit.  After  tea  the 
children  came  from  the  nursery,  [forn]  and  with  them  an  illegitimate  orphan  call'd 
Lucy  [W('<]ibk}.  .  .  .  How  fortunate  are  such  children  when  tliey  meet  with 
relations  or  friends  that  are  disposed  to  give  them  suitable  educations,"  Maau- 
Bcript  journal  of  Alice  Tucker,  December  13,  1790. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  113 

excusable.  Knox,'  however,  is,  I  believe,  too  severe  when  he  says  that 
this  writer  by  a  meretricious  and  affected  stile  far  beneath  the  native  dig- 
nity and  simplicity  of  the  ancients  has  caught  the  transient  applause  of 
the  public,  —  and  indeed  the  occasion  upon  which  he  passes  this  judgment 
renders  the  censure  very  repi-ehensible.  The  reflection  upon  Julian's 
leaving  Paris  ^  was  to  me  one  of  the  most  ingenious  passages  in  the 
book;  and  Knox,  by  setting  himself  up  as  the  champion  of  English 
prejudices,  cannot  be  quoted  by  a  neutral  person  as  an  authority  of 
great  weight. 

25th.  Copies  of  all  the  actions  which  are  to  be  entered  at  the  next 
Court  of  Common  Pleas  were  this  day  sent  to  Salem  to  be  filed  in 
the  clerk's  office,  seven  days  before  the  sitting  of  the  court,  as  the  law 
directs.     And  as  we  have  now  got  through  the  hurry  of  business,  we 

1  Vicessitnus  Knox,  master  for  thirty-three  years  of  a  school  at  Tunbridge, 
England.  Tlie  passage  referred  to  reads  as  follows:  "A  writer  of  history,  who, 
by  an  affected  and  meretricious  style,  unlike  the  manliness  of  the  classical  model, 
has  caught  the  transient  applause  of  fashion,  and\ho  seems  to  be  ambitious  of 
acquiring  distinction  by  recommending  infidelity  and  libertinism  on  pkixciple, 
speaks,  consistently  with  himself,  thus  highly  of  French  manners  ;  those  effem- 
inate manners  which,  in  the  honest  warmth  of  an  Englishman,  I  have  been  led, 
in  this  section,  and  on  all  occasions  to  reprobate :  .  .  .  I  cannot  think  it  consist- 
ent with  a  good  citizen  and  a  lover  of  one's  country  to  admire  and  extol  the  mar- 
tial spirit  of  that  nation,  which  has  so  often  been  most  hostile  to  all  we  hold  dear, 
and  behaved  with  such  perfidy  as  would  stigmatize  an  individual  in  private  life 
■with  perpetual  disgrace. 

"As  a  superintendent  of  education,  I  think  myself  bound  thus  publicly  to  dis- 
approve, on  every  proper  occasion,  all  works  which  tend  to  insinuate  corrupt  and 
infidel  principles  into  the  bosoms  of  ingenuous  youth.  All  may  err  from  passion, 
and  be  pardoned ;  but  to  defend  and  even  recommend,  moral  corruption  on  prin- 
ciple, is  a  kind  of  wickedness  which  even  candour  must  condemn  as  diabolical." 
Liberal  Education :  or  a  Practical  Treatise  on  the  Metliods  of  acquiring  Useful 
and  Polite  Learning,  10th  edit.  1789,  vol.  ii.  pp.  307-309.  "  It  was  a  mean 
subterfuge  to  make  history  the  oblique  channel  of  theological  infidelity.  An 
ingenuous  young  man  takes  up  the  book,  from  the  laudable  motive  of  improving 
his  mind  with  historical  knowledge.  But,  as  he  reads,  he  finds  himself  corrupted, 
and  is  cheated  into  irreligion  and  libertinism."  V.  Knox,  Essays  Moral  and  Lit- 
erary, 1793,  vol.  i.  p,  110. 

The  popular  prejudice  was  so  strong  that  the  President  of  Harvard  College 
deemed  it  wise  to  announce  publicly  in  the  "  Columbian  Centinel,"  November  16, 
1791,  that  "Gibbon's  History  was  never  thought  of"  for  the  Harvard  curricu- 
lum, that  Millot's  Elements  were  preferred;  —  the  latter  a  history  in  five  vol- 
umes aggregating  some  two  thousand  pages,  translated  from  the  French  of  the 
Abbe'  Millot  and  written  under  an  order  of  the  Duke  of  Parma.  October  26, 
1786,  J.  Q.  Adams  wrote:  "I  employ  most  of  my  time  at  present  in  reading  the 
Abbe  Millot's  Elements  of  History.  They  are  well  written  but  very  concise.  He 
is  quite  philosophical :  in  some  passages  perliaps  too  much  so.  At  least  he  calls 
in  question  many  historical  facts  without  sufficient  reason,  I  think.  His  reflec- 
tions, which  seem  to  form  the  greatest  part  of  the  work,  are  for  the  most  part 
just,  and  display  much  humanity,  which  is  an  essential  requisite  in  an  historian." 

2  Gibbon,  Decline  and  Fall,   chapter  xxii. 

15 


114  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

have  this  day  been  very  idle.  Mr.  Parsons  has  been  talking  all  day 
with  some  one  or  other  who  came  to  the  office.  Much  of  our  time  is 
lost  in  this  manner ;  and  if  we  complain  we  are  told  we  must  learn  to 
read  without  sulFering  ourselves  to  be  interrupted  by  any  noise  what- 
ever—  a  direction  with  which,  I  believe,  I  shall  never  be  able  to  com- 
ply. And  it  would  be  much  more  agreeable  to  me,  if  he  would 
receive  his  company  in  the  other  room,  and  spare  us  the  trouble  of 
an  apprenticeship  to  an  art  which   we  cannot  acquire. 

2Gth.  I  took  a  long  walk  this  afternoon  with  Putnam,  and  as  we 
came  back  we  stop'd  at  Mrs.  Hooper's.  Townsend  is  still  there,  the 
weather  being  so  unsettled  that  he  has  not  ventured  to  go  much  from 
the  house  yet.  He  must,  however,  go  in  a  few  days  so  [to]  Ipswich 
as  he  is  to  be  sworn  in  at  that  Court.  We  play'd  quadrill.  Miss 
Knight  and  Miss  Phillips  were  there;  with  the  latter  of  these  ladies 
I  have  never  hitherto  had  any  acquaintance.  I  went  a  mile  with  her, 
after  ten,  to  wait  on  her  home,  and  on  the  way  met  Master  Thompson, 
but  as  I  returned  I  could  not  overtake  him. 

27th.  I  went  with  Pickman,  Amory,  Stacey,  and  Putnam  to  Salis- 
bury, to  see  a  vessel  launch'd.  She  stuck  as  she  went  off.  We  dined 
there,  but  the  party  was  very  far  from  being  agreeable.  A.  Orne  is  an 
habitual  debauchee  who  at  the  age  of  five  or  six  and  twenty  has  brought 
upon  himself  the  infirmities  of  old  age.  He  is  one  of  those  human 
beings  whom  to  see  is  to  despise.  The  description  in  the  choice  of 
Hercules  beautifully  expresses  the  character.  At  about  five  in  the  after- 
noon, I  return'd  with  Pickman  and  Putnam  to  Newbury-Port,  and 
from  thence  walk'd  up  to  Little's,  where  we  found  Thompson  and  Saw- 
yer. We  pass'd  the  evening  agreeably ;  and  much  more  to  our  satisfac- 
tion than  we  could  have  done  with  those  other  lads  whom  we  left  at 
Salisbury. 

Vast  happiness  enjoy  the  gay  Allies  I 
A  Youth  of  Follies  ;  an  old  age  of  Cares : 

Young,  yet  enervate;  old  yet  never  wise; 
Vice  wastes  their  vigour,  and  their  Mind  impairs. 

28th.  The  weather  was  pleasant.  Townsend  rode  this  day.  I 
pass'd  the  evening  with  him,  and  found  Miss  Knight  at  Mrs.  Hooper's. 
After  having  dismiss'd  two  or  three  inconstant  suitors,  she  is  now 
address'd  by  a  Mr.  Gregory  from  Boston,  to  whom  she  will  probably 
soon  be  united. 

With  all  the  charms  of  beauty  richly  fraught, 

Lucinda's  form  my  fond  attention  cauglit. 

A  faultless  person  and  a  lovely  mind, 

I  found  with  wonder,  were  in  her  combin'd 

Deficient  only  in  a  single  part. 

She  wanted  nothing  but  a  feeling  heart. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  115 

Calm  and  unruffled  as  a  Summer  Sea, 
From  Passions'  gales  Lucinda's  breast  is  free, 
A  faithless  lover  she  may  well  defy 
Recall  her  heart  nor  breathe  a  single  sigh 
And  should  a  second  prove  inconstant  too 
She -changes  on  till  she  can  find  one  true.i 

Such  a  character  may  be  esteemed  ;  it  may  likewise  be  beloved,  for  she 
has  had  more  than  one  lover  ;  but  their  unsteadiness  may  possibly  derive 
some  excuse  from  this  very  disposition  of  hers  ;  for  my  own  part,  I 
never  could  conceive  such  sentiments  with  respect  to  her  as  would 
enable  me  to  be  inconstant. 

29th.  I  received  two  or  three  letters  for  Little,  and  after  finishing 
the  day  at  the  office,  I  went  and  delivered  them.  He  wont  witli  me 
and  pass'd  the  evening  with  Townsend.  Mr.  Morland  came  in  to  wait 
on  Miss  Knight  home ;  but  she  preferr'd  staying  a  day  or  two  longer 
where  she  was.  Mr.  Cutler  was  an  hour  or  two  with  us.  Sometime 
after  ten,  I  came  home. 

30th.  Parson  Toppan  of  Newtown  preach'd  at  our  meeting  this 
day.  I  attended  all  day  and  was  very  much  pleased  with  his  ingenuity. 
He  is  quite  orthodox  enough,  although  he  has  contended  with  Mr.  Spring 
upon  some  very  knotty  points.  His  delivery  is  not  graceful,  nor  even 
agreeable ;  but  the  sound  sense  and  ingenuity  which  appear  in  his  ser- 
mons more  than  compensate  for  defects  which  are  so  common.  I 
have  read  through  Knox's  treatise  upon  Education,"  and  in  general  am 
much  pleased  with  it.  If  his  censures  of  the  present  times  did  not 
some  times  border  upon  ill-nature,  and  if  he  had  not  profess'd  to  main- 
tain the  advantages  of  prejudice  and  partiality,  I  should  place  much 
greater  confidence  in  his  opinion  ;  but  his  complaints  in  many  cases  are 
but  too  just  and  too  applicable  to  the  manners  of  this  country. 

31st.  Mr.  Parsons  held  a  Justice's  Court  for  the  trial  of  a  trifling 
action  of  trover  and  conversion,  —  the  dispute  was  about  600  feet  of 
pine  boards.  The  witnesses  on  both  sides  were  examined,  and,  after  a 
trial  of  two  hours,  Mr.  Parsons  advised  them  to  settle  the  matter  between 
themselves  without  any  judgment,  which  they  accordingly  did.  The 
weather  for  a  day  or  two  past  has  been  very  mild  and  pleasant ;  verify- 
ing the  vulgar  saying,  mentioned  at  the  beginning  of  the  month.  I  walk'd 
with  Putnam  this  afternoon,  and  pass'd  the  evening  with  Townsend. 

Tuesday,  April  1st,  1788. 

The  Court  sits  this  day  at  Ipswich.  Mr.  Parsons  went  in  the  after- 
noon.    I  dined  with  him.     Pickman  gone  to  Salem,  so  that  for  two  or 

^  "  The  Vision,"  in  "  Poems  of  Religion  and  Society,"  by  J.  Q.  Adams  (1850), 
p.  111. 

2  Vicessimus  Knox  (1752-1821),  Liberal  Education,  or  a  Practical  Treatise 
on  the  Methods  of  acquiring  Useful  and  Polite  Learning.    London,  1781. 


116  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUIIfCY  ADAMS. 

three  days  I  have  been  wholly  alone  at  the  office.  Putnam  took  a 
long  walk  with  me ;  he  has  been  amusing  himself  with  Stacey  this  day 
by  the  prescriptive  privilege  of  deceiving.  The  manner  was  imprudent 
and  the  thing  itself  beneath  his  years ;  but  there  is  a  pleasure  in  play- 
ing the  fool  at  times  ;  and  perhaps  these  are  peculiarly  excusable.  As 
we  returned  fi'om  our  walk,  I  stop'd  in  at  Mrs.  Hooper's  to  pass  the 
last  evening  with  Townsend.  Parson  Cass  was  there,  but  soon  went 
off.  Amory  took  his  usual  rout ;  a  Mr.  Gartz,  who  belongs  to  Balti- 
more, Mr.  Cutler  and  Thompson  were  with  us  all  the  evening  ;  and  we 
left  them  a  little  after  ten. 

2d.  This  day  Townsend  and  Amory  finally  left  us  and  were  to  be 
sworn  into  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas  at  Ipswich.  They  entered  the 
office  both  nearly  at  the  same  time,  and  have  both  continued  here  more 
than  three  years.  Their  characters  and  dispositions  are  essentially  dif- 
ferent. With  Townsend  I  have  been  very  intimate  ever  since  I  came  to 
this  town,  but  my  acquaintance  with  Amory  has  only  been  such  as  neces- 
sarily followed  from  being  so  frequently  with  him.  Townsend  is  in 
his  twenty  fifth  year.  His  genius  is  very  good,  and  somewhat  eccentric. 
While  at  College,  and  for  some  time  after,  he  laboured  under  great  dis- 
advantages from  his  narrow  circumstances ;  but  for  three  or  four  years 
past  he  has  been  well  supported  by  a  wealthy  uncle  who  has  no  chil- 
dren, and  who  will  probably  leave  him  something.  Since  he  came  here 
his  studies  have  repeatedly  been  interrupted  ;  and  he  has  been  obliged  to 
attend  for  months  together  upon  his  brother,  who  died  last  summer  in 
a  consumption.  The  time  which  he  could  spend  here  was  generally 
well  employ'd.  His  disposition  was  easy  and  contented  ;  rather  apt  to 
contract  prejudices  either  favourable  or  unfavorable  to  persons  from  their 
first  appearance ;  his  friendships  very  strong,  and  his  aversions  rather 
severe.  He  was  attached  to  his  opinions,  and  would  defend  them  with 
warmth  ;  so  that  many  of  his  acquaintance  think  him  obstinate.  But 
he  has  frequently  said,  and,  I  believe,  justly,  that  obstinacy  consists  in 
persevering  in  an  opinion  without  being  willing  to  defend  it  when 
attacked,  not  in  being  unwilling  to  give  it  up  without  sufficient  grounds 
to  conclude  it  erroneous  ;  and  if  his  definition  be  true  I  do  not  think 
he  can  properly  [be]  called  obstinate.  Upon  general  subjects  his 
sentiments  coincided  very  well  with  mine ;  but  we  differed  very  fre- 
quently in  descending  to  particulars.  Generosity,  humanity  and  be- 
nevolence are  the  ornaments  of  his  heart,  and  in  short  from  his  whole 
character  I  have  such  an  attachment  for  him,  that  I  shall  regret  much 
his  leaving  this  town.  My  anxiety  for  his  health  increases  this  regret ; 
his  disorder  is  alarming,  and  by  so  much  the  more  as  it  has  been  pecu- 
liarly fatal  to  his  family.  Amory  I  will  mention  to-morrow.  I  took  a 
walk  with  Putnam  this  afternoon,  and  as  we  returned  Putnam  urged 
me  to  go  in  to  Dr.  Smith's,  to  which  I  finally  agreed.     Putnam  pass'd 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  117 

a  number  of  high  encomiums  upon  Miss  Smith ;  but  as  soon  as  we 
went  into  the  house  I  found  Miss  Bradbury  there  ;  which  explained 
Putnam's  eagerness.  I  sat  and  conversed  till  about  nine  o'clock,  and 
then  came  off,  leaving  my  companion  with  his  Dulcinea  there. 

3d.  Thompson  went  yesterday  morning  to  Ipswich,  and  returned 
last  evening.  I  dined  with  him  to  day.  Frank  Bradbury  and  Putnam 
were  likewise  there.  Amory  and  Townsend  were  sworn  into  Court 
yesterday  in  the  afternoon,  and  immediately  went  on  to  Salem.  Amory, 
whom  I  promised  to  mention  this  day,  is  about  twenty  three.  At  a  very 
early  period  of  life  he  was  engaged  in  scenes  of  intemperance  and  de- 
bauchery, and  contracted  a  fondness  for  them  which  he  has  not  yet 
conquered.  His  imagination  is  lively  and  his  apprehension  uncommonly 
quick  ;  but  a  great  degree  of  volatility  and  unsteadiness  render  all  his 
reforming  resolutions  abortive.  With  any  particular  object  before  him 
he  is  indefatigably  active  and  industrious  ;  but  when  it  is  ou[c]e  accom- 
plished he  too  often  relapses  into  dissipation  and  inattention.  Of  almost 
three  years  and  a  half  which  have  past  since  he  entered  Mr.  Parsons's 
office,  he  has  not,  I  suppose,  spent  two  in  this  town,  and  of  that  time 
perhaps  he  has  not  employ'd  one  half  in  the  office.  Yet  such  are  his 
natural  advantages  for  improvement  that,  in  the  short  time  which  he 
has  devoted  to  study,  he  has  acquired  almost  as  much  knowledge  of 
the  Law  as  a  common  person  would,  who  should  have  been  attentive 
through  the  whole  period.  Notwithstanding  his  habits  of  intemperance 
he  has  formed  a  tender  connection  with  a  young  lady  in  this  town, 
who  is  undoubtedly  firmly  persuaded  that  he  will  marry  her.  It  will 
certainly  be  a  great  misfortune  to  her,  should  she  be  disappointed ;  for 
after  so  long,  and  so  great  an  intimacy,  with  a  young  fellow  whose 
principles  and  practice  are  so  repugnant  to  the  general  ideas  of  mo- 
rality and  religion,  it  must  be  supposed  that  any  other  young  gentleman 
would  be  somewhat  punctilious  before  he  would  venture  to  pay  his 
addresses  to  her.  Unfortunately  the  same  causes  which  are  prejudicial 
to  her  reputation  will  tend  to  render  him  faithless  and  inconstant.  All 
that  can  be  hoped  is  (and  it  is  devoutly  to  be  wished)  that  his  native 
good  sense  and  strength  of  mind  will  rise  superior  to  all  his  youthful 
follies,  and  that  of  all  the  heterogeneous  qualities  which  compose  his 
character,  the  good  only  will  remain.  His  manners  and  address  are 
remarkably  agreeable,  and  insinuating,  and  he  possess[e3]  candour  to 
applaud  in  others  even  those  virtues  of  which  he  is  most  destitute.  In 
short  we  may  fairly  say  that,  without  an  essential  alteration  in  his 
course  of  life,  he  will  ever  be  a  worthless  character ;  but  that,  with 
such  alterations  as  time  and  experience  may  very  well  produce,  he  may 
become  one  of  the  best  and  most  useful  men  in  the  Commonwealth.^ 

1  William  Araorf ,  born  in  Boston ;  a  graduate  of  Harvard  (1784) ;  died  in 
1792,  aged  twenty-seven.    He  married  the  young  lady  referred  to  in  the  text, 


118  DIARY  OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

Dr.  Kilham  returned  this  afternoon  from  Boston,  and  Mr.  Parsons 
from  Ipswich.  I  took  a  long  walk  after  dinner  with  Putnam,  F.  Brad- 
bury, and  Thompson,  and  we  passed  the  evening  at  Putnam's  lodgings. 

4th.  The  weather  has  been  rather  disagreeable  this  day.  In  the 
evening  I  went  with  Thompson  and  Putnam  to  Mr.  Bradbury's,  where 
we  found  a  large  company.  Mr.  W.  Parsons  and  his  wife,  Mr. 
Sigourney  and  his  enamorata,  and  an  innumerable  quantity  of  Bliss 
Greenleafs.  We  pass'd  the  evening  as  usual,  singing,  playing  cards, 
&c.  Mr.  Sigourney  has  a  very  good  voice,  and  entertained  the  company 
much  more  than  such  exercises  generally  do.  We  retired  between  ten 
and  eleven  o'clock. 

5th.  Rain'd  again  a  great  part  of  the  day.  Putnam  pass'd  the  even- 
ing at  my  lodgings.  We  conversed  upon  a  variety  of  subjects.  I  am 
more  pleased  with  him  than  I  was  while  we  were  classmates.  He  is 
not  exempt  from  that  puerility  which  I  mentioned  as  constituting  his 
character;  and  I  have  sometimes  seen  him  exert  a  degree  of  little  cun- 
ning to  obtain  an  end  in  trifles  where  it  was  totally  unnecessary  even  to 
serve  his  own  purpose.  But  he  is  good-natured  and  friendly ;  willing 
and  ready  to  oblige  ;  easy  and  contented ;  enjoying  the  present  and 
looking  forward  to  futurity  without  sufficient  anxiety  to  embitter  his 
happiness.  I  often  envy  him  his  feelings.  For  "who  by  taking 
thought  can  add  one  cubit  to  his  stature?"  The  prospects  of  life 
which  are  before  me  are  by  far  the  most  frequent  employment  of  my 
thoughts  ;  and  according  to  the  different  temperature  of  my  spirits,  1 
am  sometimes  elated  with  hope,  sometimes  contented  with  indifference, 
but  often  tormented  with  fears,  and  depressed  by  the  most  discouraging 
appearances.  Such  reflections  serve  only  to  deprive  me  of  my  present 
enjoyments;  after  all,  the  events  which  time  is  to  produce  must  take 
their  course  and  "  sufficient  surely  to  the  day  is  the  evil  thereof." 

6th.  A  Parson  Allen  preach'd  this  day  for  Mr.  Carey.  I  went  to 
hear  him  in  the  forenoon.  His  sermon  was  sensible,  but  his  delivery 
was  quite  disagreeable.  His  manner  of  speaking  was  so  singular  that 
several  times  it  was  with  difficulty  I  restrained  myself  from  laughing.  I 
did  not  feel  a  great  inclination  to  hear  him  again,  and  I  therefore  went 
in  the  afternoon  and  heard  Mr.  Murray.  He  is  an  orator ;  but  if  he 
did  not  betray  such  a  consciousness  of  his  own  powers,  while  in  the 
pulpit,  he  would  be  much  more  pleasing  to  me.  There  is  no  situation, 
perhaps,  in  which  that  consummate  art  of  concealing  art  is  more  requi- 
site than  in  the  desk.  Art  is  undoubtedly  necessary  in  speaking  to 
command  the  attention  of  an  audience  ;  but  if  that  art  is  apparent  the 
solemnity  of  the  occasion  greatly  tends  to  increase  the  disgust  which  I 
always  conceive  against  affectation.     For  when  a  preacher  appears  so 

and  had  two  daughters.  He  had  already  been  admitted  to  practise  before  the 
Supreme  Court  of  Massachusetts. 


DIARY  OP   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  119 

wholly  occupied  with  the  admiration  of  his  own  rhetorical  talents,  it 
seems  he  can  have  but  little  concern  for  the  important  subject  of  which 
his  eloquence  is  only  the  instrument,  and  which  ought  to  be  the  chief, 
I  had  almost  said  the  only,  object  of  his  thoughts. 

7th.  I  went  with  Thompson  to  Mr.  Atkins's,  to  answer  to  an  action 
which  we  had  brought  before  him  this  day.  The  first  Monday  in 
April,  being  the  day  appointed  by  the  Constitution  for  the  choice  of 
Governor,  Lieutenant  Governor  and  Senators,  the  town  meeting  here 
began  at  ten  in  the  morning,  and  the  poll  was  closed  at  four  in  the 
afternoon.  Mr.  Hancock  and  General  Lincoln  had  a  great  majority 
in  this  town,  as  well  as  in  Newbury,  and  a  Federal  list  of  Senators ; 
for  Fed  and  anti  are  the  only  distinctions  at  this  day.  Mr.  S.  Adams 
had  a  number  of  votes  for  Lieutt.  Governor,  but,  for  wliat  reason  I 
cannot  tell,  all  the  influence  was  against  him.  The  revolution  that 
has  taken  place  in  sentiments  within  one  twelve  month  past  must  be 
astonishing  to  a  person  unacquainted  with  the  weaknesses,  the  follies, 
and  the  vices  of  human  nature.  The  very  men  wlio  at  the  last  election 
declared  that  the  Commonwealth  would  be  ruined  if  Mr.  Hancock  was 
chosen  have  now  done  every  thing  to  get  him  in.  And  the  other  side 
are  equally  capricious.^     We  have  not  yet  got  sufficiently  settled  to 

1  A  letter  written  by  J.  Q.  Adams  to  his  father,  and  dated  Braintree,  June  30, 
1787,  describes  the  conditions  attending  the  elections  of  the  preceding  year.  It 
reads  as  follows  :  — 

"...  Mr.  Hancock  was  again  elected  governour  this  year,  and  out  of  18,000 
votes  he  had  more  than  13,000.  This  plainly  shows  that  the  people  in  general  are 
displeased  witli  some  part  of  Mr.  Bowdoin's  conduct :  but  it  is  the  caprice  of  an 
ungrateful  populace,  for  which  it  must  ever  be  impossible  to  account.  Mr.  Han- 
cock is  very  much  involved  in  debt,  if  common  report  be  true;  it  is  even  confi- 
dently asserted  that  his  present  estate  would  not  by  any  means  do  justice  to  his 
creditors.  It  is  therefore  concluded  that  he  would  favour  tender  acts,  paper 
currencies  and  all  those  measures,  which  would  give  the  sanction  of  the  law  to 
private  fraud  and  villainy  :  it  was  supposed  that  a  Senate  and  an  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives would  be  chosen,  perfectly  willing  to  abolish  all  contracts  public  and 
private,  ready  in  short  to  redress  the  people's  grievances,  that  is,  to  gratify  their 
passions  and  justify  their  crimes.  But  these  fears  were  not  entirely  well  grounded ; 
there  are  indeed  several  Senators  and  many  Representatives,  who  would  stick  at 
nothing.  A  Willard,  a  Drury,  a  Whitney,  and  many  others,  who  have  openly 
espoused  the  cause  of  treason  and  rebellion,  are  now  among  the  legislators  of  the 
country;  intestinam  aliquam  quotidie  perniciem  reipublicce  molientes.  There  is 
however  in  both  branches  of  the  legislature  a  majority  of  well  meaning  men, 
who  -will  support  the  dignity  of  ttie  government,  and  who  will  not  prostitute  the 
honour  of  their  country.  A  motion  was  made  a  few  days  since,  tliat  a  committee 
should  be  appointed  to  examine  the  merits  of  a  paper  currency,  and  to  report  upon 
the  expediency  of  an  emission  at  present,  but  there  was  a  majority  of  more  than 
50,  even  against  the  committing  of  it.  It  has  been  resolved  that  the  Court  should 
move  out  of  the  town  of  Boston,  and  the  committee  have  finally  recommended 
Concord  as  the  most  proper  place  to  which  it  may  be  removed.  The  people  in 
the  country  are  ver}-  earnest  in  this  point;  and  as  usual  without  knowing  why. 
The  salaries  of  all  civil  officers,  which  are  now  too  small,  will  infallibly  be  reduced 


120  DIAKY  OF  JOHX   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

have  stated  parties ;  but  we  sliall  soon,  I  have  no  doubt,  obtain  the 
blessing.  I  pass'd  an  hour  or  two  this  evening  with  Thompson  at  Mrs. 
Emery's,  and  he  spent  half  an  hour  with  me,  till  nine  o'clock. 

8th.  Pickman  returned  last  evening  from  Salem.  The  votes  ia 
that  town,  and  in  several  others  from  which  accounts  have  been  re- 
ceived, are  equally  favorable  or  more  so  than  they  were  in  this  town 
to  Mr.  Hancock  and  General  Lincoln.  I  called  and  passed  an  hour  or 
two  at  Mrs.  Hooper's  in  the  evening.  Miss  Cazneau  was  there.  Came 
home  early  in  the  evening. 

Belinda  next  advane'd  with  rapid  stride 

A  compound  strange  of  Vanity  and  Pride 

Around  her  face  no  wanton  Cupids  play, 

Her  tawny  skin,  defies  the  God  of  Day. 

Loud  was  her  laugh,  undaunted  was  her  look. 

And  folly  seem'd  to  dictate  what  she  spoke. 

In  vain  the  Poet's  and  musician's  art 

Combine  to  move  the  Passions  of  the  heart, 

Belinda's  voice  like  grating  hinges  groans, 

And  in  harsh  thunder  roars  a  lover's  moans.^ 

9th.  Dined  with  Pickman  and  Thompson  at  Mr  Parsons's  upon 
salmon,  which  begin  now  to  be  caught  in  the  river.  We  did  not  do 
much  business  in  the  afternoon.  I  called  upon  Putnam,  after  taking  a 
walk  with  Thompson,  but  Putnam  was  engaged  for  the  evening,  so 
that  I  soon  came  home  to  my  lodgings. 

still  lower.  Mr.  Hancock,  who  has  a  peculiar  talent  of  pleasing  the  multitude,  has 
coiupounded  the  matter  bj  ofiferhig  to  make  a  present  to  tlie  public  of  300£,  but  I 
consider  this  as  a  pernicious  precedent;  a  palliative  worse  than  it  would  have 
been,  had  the  legislature  curtailed  the  salary.  For  if  one  man  gives  up  300i;,  an- 
other, fishing  equally  for  popularity,  may  give  more,  and  the  chair  of  government 
may  finally  be  offered  to  the  lowest  bidder.  It  is  impossible  for  a  free  nation  to 
subsist  without  parties,  and  unfortunately  our  parties  are  not  yet  form'd.  The 
democratieal  branch  of  our  government  is  at  present  quite  unrival'd ;  and  we  se- 
verely feel  the  want  of  sufficient  strength  in  the  other  branches.  The  Senate  in- 
deed has  several  times  within  these  eighteen  months  saved  the  commonwealth 
from  complete  anarchy,  and  perhaps  from  destruction ;  but  its  hands  are  tied ; 
and  the  people  are  too  generally  disposed  to  abolish  the  Senate  as  an  useless 
body.  I  have  indeed  great  hopes  that  the  Defence  of  the  Constitutions  will  pro- 
duce an  alteration  in  their  sentiments;  it  will  certainly  have  great  weight.  One 
printer  in  Boston  is  employ'd  in  printing  a  new  edition  of  this  book,  and  another 
is  retailing  it  twice  a  week  in  a  newspaper ;  so  that  I  hope  it  will  be  sufficiently 
spread  throughout  the  Commonwealth.  As  to  the  monarchical  power,  it  appears 
to  be  entirely  out  of  the  question,  and  unless  by  a  revolution  it  be  established 
upon  the  ruin  of  the  two  others,  it  will  never  possess  influence  sufficient  to  hold 
the  balance  between  them." 

The  reference  in  the  closing  lines  of  the  above  letter  is  to  John  Adams's  De- 
fence of  the  American  Constitutions,  London,  3  vols.  1787, 1788.  See  Life  and 
Works  of  John  Adams,  vols,  iv.-vi. 

1  "  The  Vision,"  a  poem  by  J.  Q.  Adams  in  "  Pojems  of  Religion  and  Society  " 
(1850),  p.  111. 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  121 

10th.  From  the  divers  interruptions  which  we  met  with  in  the 
course  of  the  day,  we  did  but  little  at  the  office.  We  met  this  evening 
at  Pickman's  chamber.  He  has  joined  us,  and  is  regularly  with  us. 
Stacey  likewise  pass'd  the  evening  with  us,  and  Mr.  W.  Farnham.  I 
agreed  to  go  witli  Pickman  to  Haverhill  to-morrow.  From  thence  I 
intend  in  the  beginning  of  the  next  week  to  proceed  to  Cambridge, 
attend  at  the  exhibition  there  ;  and  then  go  to  Braintree  and  spend  a 
few  days.  And  I  shall  probably  meet  my  brothers  there.  I  have 
sometimes  intended  to  wait  for  my  father's  arrival  before  I  should  go 
that  way  ;  but  it  is  almost  six  months  since  I  saw  my  friends  in  Cam- 
bridge, Braintree,  &c.,  which  makes  me  somewhat  impatient ;  and,  if  I 
wait  for  my  father,  I  know  not  whether  I  shall  go  in  one  month  or  two. 
As  I  have  been  so  little  absent  through  the  winter,  I  may  venture  now 
to  indulge  myself  for  a  fortnight. 

11th.  I  set  out  with  Pickman  this  morning  at  about  nine  o'clock. 
The  weather  was  clear  though  rather  windy  ;  before  twelve  we  arrived 
at  Haverhill.  I  went  immediately  to  Mr.  Shaw's,  and  Pickman  went 
to  the  tavern  to  meet  a  carriage  which  he  expected  from  Salem ;  but 
very  unfortunately  he  found  the  carriage  had  past  through  the  town, 
not  more  than  a  quarter  of  an  hour  before  he  got  there.  Such  dis- 
appointments are  peculiarly  teazing  to  lovers,  and  are  felt  perhaps 
more  keenly  than  greater  misfortunes.^  After  dinner  I  went  down  to 
Mr.  White's,  and  was  sorry  to  find  that  Leonard  was  gone  to  Ham- 
stead  with  his  mother.  I  call'd  likewise  at  Mr.  Thaxter's,  but  he  was 
not  at  home.  I  sat  half  an  hour  with  Mrs.  Thaxter,  who  has  met  with 
a  misfortune  and  been  very  unwell  for  some  time  past.  I  thence 
went  up  to  Judge  Sargeant's  to  pay  a  visit  there;  and  I  found  Mr. 
Thaxter  with  him.  I  returned  soon  and  drank  tea  at  Mr.  Thaxter's ; 
and  soon  after  went  back  to  Mr  Shaw's. 

12th.  In  the  forenoon  I  went  down  and  spent  a  couple  of  hours 
with  Mr  Thaxter ;  the  rest  of  the  day  I  employ'd  in  reading  upon 
several  subjects.  I  took  up  Hudibras  in  the  afternoon,  and  diverted 
myself  with  it  for  an  hour  or  two. 

13th.  Attended  meeting  all  day.  Dined  at  Mr.  Thaxter's  with  Mr. 
J.  Duncan.  And  in  the  afternoon  after  service,  we  took  a  long  walk. 
When  we  return'd  to  Mr.  Thaxter's  we  found  Mr.  Bartlett  and  his  wife 
and  Leonard  White  there.  Mr.  Parsons  came  in  soon  after.  He  is 
going  to  attend  the  Supreme  Court  who  will  sit  this  week  at  Concord. 
The  conversation  soon  turned  upon  political  subjects  ;  I  knew  we  should 
have  over  again  what  I  have  heard  twenty  times ;  and  therefore  I  took 
a  walk  with  Leonard  White ;  and  went  home  between  nine  and  ten  in 
the  evening. 

1  A  year  and  a  half  later  Pickman  married  Anstiss  Derby,  daughter  of  Ellas 
H.  Derby,  the  most  eminent  merchant  in  Salem. 

16 


122  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

14th.  I  met  with  several  impediments  in  the  morning  so  that  it  was 
eleven  o'clock  before  I  cross'd  the  river.  The  weather  was  very  good, 
but  growing  cloudy.  I  got  to  Doctor  Kitteridge's  ^  liouse  at  Andover, 
before  one.  I  stop'd  to  see  my  classmate  W.  Abbot,^  and  dined  there. 
Bowman  and  Wyeth  ^  were  likewise  there.  I  would  say  something  of 
Mrs.  Kitteridge,  but  it  would  be  now  a  very  improper  time  to  give  an 
account  of  such  impressions.  I  left  the  house  before  three ;  and  soon 
after  it  began  to  rain,  and  continued  without  intermission  untill  I  arrived 
at  Cambridge ;  I  got  there  at  about  six.  I  rode  eight  or  ten  miles 
with  an  Almsbury  man  who  is  going  to  Concord  Court  upon  business. 
Mr.  Parsons  is  engaged  in  his  cause,  and  the  man  had  a  deal  to  say 
about  lawyers.  I  found  my  brothers  at  our  old  chamber ;  and  after 
sitting  with  them  half  an  hour  went  over,  and  pass'd  the  remainder  of 
the  evening  with  Packard.  I  found  Cushman  at  his  chamber,  and  we 
spent  tlie  eve  very  sociably.  Clarke  had  been  riding  in  the  rain,  as  well 
as  myself,  the  greatest  part  of  the  day.  He  came  from  Harvard,  where 
he  went  to  accompany  Grosvenor,  who  went  home  very  sick  a  few  days 
ago.     Cushman  ^  is  apprehensive  that  he  will  not  be  able  to  obtain  his 

1  Dr.  Thomas  Kittredge,  about  forty  years  of  age,  served  as  surgeon  of  the 
First  Massachusetts  llegiiiientin  the  Revohitionary  War;  elected  this  year  (1788) 
with  William  Sj'mmes  (see  supra,  p.  38)  to  the  Massachusetts  Convention  ;  voted 
against  the  ratification  of  the  Constitution  of  tlie  United  States;  1802-1800,  1811, 
1815,  1817,  represented  Andover  in  the  Legislature;  1810-1811  on  the  Governor's 
Council ;  died  1818.  His  new  mansion,  built  in  1784,  was  the  finest  in  North  An- 
dover; still  standing  (1880).  S.  L.  Baik-y,  Hist.  Sketches  of  Andover,  pp.  157- 
159.   Abbot,  a  classmate  of  J.  Q.  Adams,  was  a  student  in  his  office. 

2  "  William  Lovejoy  Abbot  was  twenty-one  January  18tli.  He  belongs  to  An- 
dover, and  is  the  head  of  our  class.  He  purposes  studying  Physic.  A  very  steady 
sober  lad,  he  appears  fond  of  being  thought  a  dry  humourous  fellow,  and  has  ac- 
quired a  great  command  of  his  countenance.  ITis  wit  would  not  please  in  the 
mouth  of  any  other  person  ;  but  his  manner  of  producing  it  seldom  fails  of  raising 
the  laugh.  He  is  a  very  good  speaker,  especially  such  pieces  as  conceal  the 
features  of  mirth  under  the  mask  of  gravity."  J.  Q.  Adams,  diary,  August  25, 
178G.  Born  in  Andover,  January  18,  1765;  died  April,  1798;  a  physician  in 
Haverhill. 

3  Nathaniel  Bowman  (H.  C.  178^)  and  Tapley  Wyeth  (H.  C.  1786)  were  later 
physicians  —  the  one  at  Gorham,  Me.;  the  other  at  Sherburne,  Mass. 

*  "Joshua  Cushman  of  Bri(lg\vater  will  be  twenty-three  the  11th  of  next 
month.  Poverty  appears  to  be  liis  greatest  enemy  ;  she  opposes  his  progress,  and 
he  has  a  very  great  struggle  with  her  to  go  tlirough  College.  For  genius  he  is 
neither  at  the  Zenith  nor  at  the  Nadir;  but  somewiiere  about  half  way  between. 
For  improvements,  he  has  made  as  many  perhaps  as  his  circumstances  would 
allow  him.  In  composition,  an  admiration  of  beautiful  periods  and  elegant  ex- 
pression have  taken  from  the  natural  taste  for  that  simplicity  in  which  alone  true 
beauty  and  elegance  consist.  His  conversation  sometimes  degenerates  into  bom- 
bast; to  express  that  he  wants  a  glass  of  water  he  will  say,  that  within  the  con- 
cave excavation  of  his  body,  there  are  certain  cylindric  tubes  which  require  to  be 
replenished  from  the  limpid  fountain  or  the  meandering  rivulet.  In  tiie  public 
e.xercices  of  composition,  his  greatest  fault  is  proUxity.    He  will  write  two  sheets 


DIAKY  OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  123 

degree  before  next  Commencement.  He  tells  me  he  has  not  yet 
preached,  as  had  been  reported.  Child, ^  Kellogg^  and  Mead  ^  are,  he 
says,  the  only  classmates  of  ours  who  have  yet  appeared  in  the  pulpit. 

15th.  The  weather  was  quite  disagreeable  for  exhibition  ;  in  conse- 
quence of  which  there  was  but  little  company.  Phillips  began  the 
performances  with  a  Latin  Oration.  His  subject  was  General  Washing- 
ton ;  a  subject  which  must  be  inexhaustible  or  it  would  long  since  have 
been  exhausted.  He  spoke  well.  Treadwell  and  Gardner  next  came 
upon  the  stage,  in  a  forensic  disputation.  Their  question  was  something 
like  this,  —  Whether  mankind  have  any  natural  right  to  authority  over 
one  another.  They  quibbled  about  words  and  said  on  neither  side 
much  to  the  purpose.  Treadwell,  however,  did  better  than  I  expected 
of  him.    In  the  syllogistic  dispute  Cutts  *  was  respondent,  Bhike  2  and 

of  paper  full  for  a  forensic,  while  scarcely  any  other  of  the  class  will  scarcely  fill 
half  one.  He  is  however  esteemed  by  the  class  in  general  as  an  amiable  char- 
acter, if  not  as  an  uncommon  genius."  J.  Q.  Adams,  March  23,  1787.  Cushman 
settled  in  Winslow,  Me.;  was  a  Representative  and  Senator  in  the  Massachusetts 
Legislature,  1809-1811;  a  member  of  Congress,  1819-1825;  died  in  Augusta, 
January,  1834. 

1  Apparently  Child  decided  that  preaching  was  not  his  vocation,  and  became  a 
physician  and  apothecary  in  northern  New  York.  J.  Q.  Adams  wrote  of  liim, 
March  17,  1787:  "As  a  scholar  he  is  not  remarkable;  and  although  he  has  en- 
deavoured more  than  ouce  to  display  his  genius  by  declaiming  his  own  composition, 
yet  the  mo.st  common  opinion  is,  that  he  has  not  succeeded.  Divinity  will  be  his 
profession,  and  he  has  already  acquired  a  ministerial  cant,  which  is  such  an 
essential  quality  to  a  preacher." 

2  Samuel  Kellogg,  pastor  at  Hebron,  Conn.,  1788-1793;  died  at  East  Hartford 
in  1826. 

2  "  Samuel  Mead,  of  Harvard,  Worcester  Co.,  will  be  twenty-five  the  30th  of 
this  month.  His  oratorical  and  scholastic  talents  are  not  remarkable  on  either 
side  ;  he  has  a  command  of  his  countenance,  which  gives  him  a  great  advantage 
in  declaiming  humorous  pieces.  He  is  an  exceedingly  kind  neighbour,  and  I 
liave  lived  in  the  chamber  adjoining  his,  upon  very  friendly  terms,  this  year  ; 
but  his  politeness,  I  fear,  goes  too  far,  for  it  appears  to  me,  he  is  always  of  the 
same  opinion  with  his  company  however  opposite  that  may  be  at  different  times. 
lie  has  even  been  accused  of  hypocrisy ;  this  charge  however,  I  hope,  is  entirely 
without  foundation,  and  I  have  no  reason  to  doubt  of  his  honour  or  of  his  sin- 
cerity. The  greatest  defect  which  I  have  observed  in  him,  has  been  a  jealousy 
and  suspicion  of  what  others  have  said  of  him.  This  circumstance  has  set  him 
at  variance  with  several  of  his  classmates ;  and  has  probably  been  the  cause  of 
those  reports  which  have  been  spread,  injurious  to  his  honour."  J.  Q.  Adams, 
diary,  May  18,  1787.  Born  May  .30,  1762,  at  Harvard;  pastor  at  Alstead,  N.  H., 
January  15, 1791,  to  April  28,  1797 ;  resigned  because  of  a  change  in  his  theologi- 
cal beliefs  to  the  Unitarian  faith ;  married  Esther  Sartwell  Crafts,  a  well-to-do 
widow ;  died  in  Walpole,  N.  H.,  March,  1832.  G.  Aldrich,  Walpole  as  it  was  and 
as  it  is,  pp.  327,  328. 

*  Charles  Cutts  (H.  C.  1789),  Secretary  of  the  Senate  of  the  United  States 
during  the  administration  of  President  Monroe.  Born  January  31, 1769 ;  studied 
law  with  Judge  Pickering ;  Speaker  of  the  lower  house  of  the  New  Hampshire 
Legislature  in  1804 ;  U.  S.  Senator  1810-1813 ;  Secretary  of  the  Senate  1814- 
1825;  died  January  25,  1846,  in  Fairfax  County,  Va. 


124  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

Wigo'lesworth  opponents.  I  have  forgotten  the  question  upon  which 
tliey  exerciced  their  ingenuity.  Bradbury  and  Hooper  personated  Plato 
and  Diogenes,  in  a  dialogue  upon  the  conduct  of  courtiers :  the  only 
fault  that  could  be  found  was  that  Hooper's  delicacy  of  person  and  neat- 
ness of  dress  contrasted  rather  too  much  with  our  ideas  of  Diogenes,  and 
indeed  with  what  he  said  in  that  character.  Paine  and  Shaw  spoke 
a  Greek  dialogue  in  which  I  did  not  feel  myself  greatly  interested  ;  and 
Abbot  ^  closed  with  an  English  Oration  upon  the  slave-trade.  The 
composition  was  very  good,  and  it  was  well  spoken,  though  the  natural 
disadvantage  of  a  weak  voice  injured  the  effect  of  his  delivery.  I  do 
not  recollect  having  heard  any  performances  upon  this  subject  at 
College,  and  it  will  afford  a  fruitful  source  for  declamation.  The 
Governor  then  arose  and  made  a  speech  addressed  to  the  students,  in 
■which  he  congrattxlated  them  upon  their  proficiency,  and  exhorted  them 
to  go  on  in  the  ways  of  well-doing.  The  music  which  succeeded  was 
but  indifferent.  They  had  no  violin ;  and  Fay,  their  best  performer, 
was  unwell,  and  did  not  attend.  After  the  exhibition  was  over  I  went 
down  to  Judge  Dana's,  and  dined  in  company  with  a  number  of  ladies. 
Stedman  and  Harris,  the  butler,  dined  there  too.  There  was  a  Miss 
Patten  from  Rhode  Island.  Almy  Ellery  is  fond  of  her,  and  I  will 
trust  to  her  judgment ;  but  was  it  not  for  that  I  should  not  be  much  pre- 
possessed in  the  lady's  favour.  She  is  very  tall,  very  young,  and  very 
diffident.  Miss  Badger  I  have  seen  before  ;  but  there  are  three  or 
four  Miss  Clarkes,^  of  whom  I  have  heard  much  said,  and  whom  I  this 
day  saw  for  the  first  time.  They  are  all  agreeable  ;  and  none  of  them 
handsome  :  Patty  is  the  most  comely,  me  judice.  After  dinner  I  called 
at  Dr.  Wigglesworth's,  but  the  young  ladies  were  gone  over  to  the 
College,  to  drink  tea.  We  went  to  Phillips's  chamber.  It  was  full  of 
company.  Between  seven  and  eight  we  went  to  Brown's  rooms,  and 
danced  till  between  twelve  and  one.  I  was  completely  fatigued,  and 
glad  that  the  company  then  dispersed.  I  pass'd  the  evening  very  agree- 
ably ;  and,  after  breaking  up,  went  with  my  classmate  Foster,  and 
lodg'd  at  my  brother's  chamber ;  where  by  priority  of  possession  I  still 
claim  a  right. 

IGth.     Breakfasted  at  Judge  Dana's.     Doctor  Waterhouse  ^  came  in 

1  Benjamin  Abbot  (H.  C.  1788),  son  of  Captain  John  Abbot;  born  September 
17,  1762,  in  Andover;  married,  in  1791,  Hannah  Tracy  Emery,  of  Newburyport 
(see  supra,  p.  45) ;  was  principal  of  Pliillips  Exeter  Academy  for  fifty  years ; 
died  1849.    Abiel  Abbot,  Register  of  tlie  Abbot  Family,  pp.  4,  5. 

2  Daughters  of  the  Rev.  Jonas  Clarke,  of  Lexington  ;  see  supra,  p.  27,  note  4. 
"  Patty  "  married  Rev.  William  Harris,  afterward  President  of  Columbia  College. 
Hudson,  Hist,  of  Lexington,  Gen.  Register,  pp.  43-45. 

8  Benjamin  Waterhouse  (M.D.  Leyden,  1780),  a  lifelong  friend  of  John  Adams 
and  his  son,  Hersey  Professor  of  the  Theory  and  Practice  of  Medicine  at  Harvard 
(1783-1812).    See  letter  of  John  Adams  to  Dr.  Waterhouse  dated  April  24, 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  125 

and  entertained  us  for  some  time  with  his  quaint  wit.  I  paid  several 
visits  in  the  course  of  the  forenoon  ;  pass'd  a  couple  of  hours  very  agree- 
ably with  Miss  Wigglesworth  and  Miss  Jones  —  the  latter  of  these  two 
ladies,  in  former  times,  was  not  with  me  upon  so  good  terms  as  at 
present.  I  thought  her  capricious  and  ill-natured  ;  but  of  late  she  has 
been  much  better.  I  once  wrote  a  double  acrostic  for  her,  neither  part 
of  which  was  true.  As  I  did  not  insert  them  at  the  time  I  will 
now  introduce  one  of  them;  for  the  contrast  is  false  and  unjust.  I  went 
to  see  Mr.  Smith,  the  Librarian,  and  also  to  Mr.  Gannett's,^  where  Miss 
Lucy  Crauch  "  has  been  these  two  mouths  past.  The  young  lovers  went 
home  this  forenoon  with  the  Miss  Clarkes ;  and  Mr.  Andrews  did  not 
get  back  till  we  had  nearly  dined.  Immediately  after  dinner  I  mounted 
my  horse ;  and  got  to  Mr.  Crauch's,  between  six  and  seven.  My  aunt, 
I  found,  was  gone  to  Cambridge  for  Lucy,  and  expects  to  return  with 
her  to-morrow.  I  found  my  friends  well  except  W.  Cranch,  who  has 
been  very  unwell,  but  is  recovering.  .  .  . 

17th.  Fast  day.  In  the  forenoon  I  remained  at  home,  and  spent  my 
time  in  writing  and  reading.  In  the  afternoon  I  heard  Parson  Wibird. 
Mrs.  Crauch  and  Miss  Lucy  came  home  this  evening ;  a  person  from 
Boston  brought  us  some  letters  ^  which  came  from  Europe.      Callahan 

1785,  recommending  "  your  old  acquaintance  [at  Leyden]  John  Quincy  Adams  " 
to  his  "attention  and  favor  "on  entering  Harvard.  John  Adams,  Works,  vol.  ix. 
pp.  530,  631,  vol.  iii.  p.  269  ;  J.  Q.  Adams,  Memoirs,  vol.  vii.  pp.  14,  15,  230;  vol. 
viii.  p.  546 ;  vol.  ix.  p.  4 ;  also  letter  from  Dr.  Waterhouse  to  J.  Q.  Adams  in  Proc. 
Mass.  Hist.  Soc,  2d  series,  vol.  xv.  pp.  400-462. 

1  Caleb  Gannett  (H.  C.  1763),  steward  of  the  college  1779-1818 ;  born  in  Bridge- 
water  ;  pastor  in  Nova  Scotia  1768-1771 ;  identified  with  Harvard  from  1773  till 
his  deatli  as  tutor,  fellow,  or  steward  ;  one  of  the  projectors  of  the  American 
Academy  of  Arts  and  Sciences ;  a  member  of  the  Massachusetts  Historical 
Society.     See  2  Mass.  Hist.  Coll.,  vol.  viii.  pp.  277-285. 

2  Lucy  Cranch,  cousin  of  J.  Q.  Adams,  daughter  of  Richard  Cranch  ;  born 
September  16,  1767 ;  married,  April  4,  1795,  John  Greenleaf,  a  blind  musician, 
son  of  William  Greenleaf,  of  Boston;  resided  in  Quincy  ;  died  February  18,  1846. 
J.  E.  Greenleaf,  Genealogy  of  the  Greenleaf  Family,  p.  217. 

3  Among  them  was  the  following  characteristic  letter  from  his  father:  — 

Geosyenoe  Squaee,  Jan.  23,  17S8. 

My  dear  John,  —  I  am  much  pleased  with  your  oration  and  much  obliged  to 
you  for  it.  It  seems  to  me,  making  allowance  for  a  father's  partiality,  to  be  full 
of  manly  sense  and  spirit.  By  the  sentiments  and  principles  in  that  oration, 
I  hope  you  will  live  and  die,  and  if  you  do  I  dont  care  a  farthing  how  many  are 
preferred  to  you,  for  style,  elegance  and  mellifluence. 

To  Vattel  and  Burlamaqui,  whom  you  say  you  have  read,  you  must  add 
Grotius  and  Puffendorf  and  Heineccius,  and  besides  this  you  should  have  some 
volume  of  Ethicks  constautly  on  your  table.  Morals,  my  boy,  Morals  should 
be,  as  they  are  eternal  in  tlieir  nature,  the  everlasting  object  of  your  pursuit. 
Socrates  and  Plato,  Cicero  and  Seneca,  Butler  and  Hutchinson,  as  well  as  the 
Propliets,  Evangelists  and  Apostles,  should  be  your  continual  teacliers. 

But  let  me  advise  you  in  another  art,  I  mean  oratory,  not  to  content  yourself 


126  DIAr.Y   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

was  to  sail  about  the  first  of  this  month,  which  will  probably  be  ex- 
tended to  the  fifteenth.  By  this  time,  I  suppose,  my  friends  will  be 
at  sea. 

18th.  A  cold  north-east  storm  confined  us  to  the  house  all  day. 
I  read  a  few  pages  in  one  of  Gilbert's  treatises,  and  wrote  a  little  like- 
wise. The  time  however  was  spent  without  much  improvement. 
Doctor  Tufts  was  over  here  yesterday,  and  this  day  he  was  atten<ling 
upon  Miss  Quincy,  who  has  been  very  ill  in  consequence  of  making 
a  mistake  in  taking  medicine,  by  swallowing  salt  petre  instead  of  salts. 

19th.  The  weather  has  been  rather  better  this  day  than  it  was  yes- 
terday. I  went  with  both  my  brothers  on  a  shooting  party,  an  amuse- 
ment which  I  follow  nowhere  except  at  Braintree,  though  there  could 
nut  perhaps  be  a  more  miserable  place  for  sport.  Dined  with  W. 
Cranch  and  my  brothers  at  Dr.  Tufts's  in  Weymouth ;  and  saw  Mrs. 
Tufts  ^  for  the  first  time  since  her  marriage.  Last  fall  she  was  at  New- 
bury-Port,  when  Mr.  Odiorne  was  married ;  and  at  that  time  had  no 
thoughts,  or  at  least  no  expectation,  of  changing  her  situation  soon. 
But  Mr.  Tufts,  who  had  always  been  remarkably  backward  in  affairs 
of  this  nature,  was  equally  expeditious  when  he  was  once  engaged. 
He  could  not  even  wait  till  he  had  got  an  house  ready  ;  but  mar- 
ried immediately  and  lives  for  the  present  with  his  father.  We  re- 
turn'd,  so  as  to  get  home  just  before  dark. 

20th.  I  pass'd  the  forenoon  at  home  in  writing.  In  the  afternoon, 
I  attended  meeting  and  heard  Mr.  Wibird.  After  meeting,  I  went 
down  to  view  the  house,^  which    they    are   repairing  for   my  father. 

with  Blair  and  Sherridan,  but  to  read  Cicero  and  Quintilian,  —  and  to  read  them 
with  a  dictionary,  grammar  and  pen  and  ink,  for  Juvenal  is  very  right 
Studium  sine  Calamo  Somnium. 

Preserve  your  Latin  and  Greek  like  the  apple  of  your  eye. 

When  you  attend  the  Superior  Court,  carry  always  your  pen  and  ink  and 
paper  and  take  notes  of  every  dictum,  every  point  and  every  authority.  But 
remember  to  show  the  same  respect  to  the  Judges  and  lawyers  who  are  estab- 
lished in  practice  before  you,  as  you  resolved  to  show  the  President,  tutors  pro- 
fessors, and  masters  and  batchelors  at  Colledge. 

Mr  Parsons,  your  master,  is  a  great  lawyer  and  should  be  your  oracle. 

But  you  have  now  an  intercourse  with  his  clients,  whom  it  is  your  duty  to 
treat  with  kindness,  modesty  and  civility,  and  to  whose  rii^hts  and  interests  you 
ought  to  liave  an  inviolable  attachment.  Mr.  Parsons's  honour,  reputation  and 
interest  should  be  as  dear  to  you  as  your  own. 

I  hope  to  see  you  in  May,  —  Meantime  I  am  with  the  tenderest  affection  your 
Father.  Joun  Adams. 

1  See  supra,  p.  43,  7iote  6. 

2  "  Tins  was  the  house  of  Leonard  Vassall,  a  West  India  planter,  which,  after 
the  Revolution,  had  been  sequestrated  as  Tory  property.  It  was  built  in  1731, 
and  Mr.  Adams  bought  it  in  1785.  The  Vassalls  were  genteel  people,  and  rigid 
Episcopalians.  .  .  .  The  house  in  Quincy  was  used  as  a  summer  resort,  and  still 
contains  one  room  [the  parlor]  jianeled  from  floor  to  ceiling  in  solid  St.  Domingo 
mahogany.   Originally  a  small  dwelling,  it  has  been  added  to."   Here  John  Adams 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  127 

I  was  not  perfectly  pleased  with  it ;  but  it  now  appears  in  a  very 
unfavourable  light.  They  are  obliged  to  make  the  most  necessary  re- 
pairs very  hastily,  expectiug  my  father  in  a  few  weeks.  I  am  in  hopes 
that  after  my  parents  return,  this  place  will  be  more  lively  and  agree- 
able to  me  than  it  is  at  present.  I  think  I  shall  never  make  it  the 
standing  place  of  my  residence  ;  ^  but  I  shall  wish  to  pass  much  of  my 
time  here,  and  hojje  the  change  may  be  for  the  better. 

21st.  We  were  again  confined  all  day  to  the  house  by  the  bad- 
ness of  the  weather.  Mr.  Cranch,  however,  went  to  Boston.  I  find, 
as  I  always  have  found,  great  inconvieuces  in  writing  here,  and  in- 
deed there  are  no  small  inconvieuces  in  thinking.  I  wrote,  however, 
a  little,  and  read  a  few  pages  in  Gilbert's  treatise  of  Evidence,^  it  being 
a  law  book.  W.  Cranch  is  reading  Bacon, ^  but  makes  no  great  prog- 
ress in  it  at  Braintree.  It  is  a  book  which  many  instructors  recom- 
mend to  be  read  through  in  course;  but  Mr.  Parsons  says  it  is  calculated 
only  to  make  matter  of  ftict  lawyers;  men,  who,  without  knowing  the 
true  principles  upon  which  the  science  is  grounded,  or  the  reasoning  by 
which  it  is  supported,  will  be  confined  in  their  knowledge  to  ita  lex 
scripta  est,  and  will  be  incapable  of  applying  the  principles  to  new  cases, 
or  to  circumstances  different  from  such  as  have  already  taken  place. 

22d.  I  took  a  ride  in  the  forenoon  with  W.  Cranch.  Mr.  Cranch 
came  home  from  Boston,  and  brought  young  Waters  with  him.  Mr. 
Weld,  with  his  wife  and  her  sister,  pass'd  the  afternoon  here  ;  and  when 
I  returu'd  from  my  father's  library,  where  I  went  to  take  a  list  of  his 
law-books,  I  found  Mr.  Norton  *  here.  He  has  some  thoughts  of  going 
to  Menotomy   to-moi-row,  to   Mr.  Fiske's  ^  ordination  ;  and  made  this 

and  his  wife  spent  their  latter  days  and  "  celebrated  their  golden  wedding, 
and  liere  too,  marvelous  to  relate,  was  celebrated  the  golden  wedding  of  their 
son  John  Quincy  Adams,  and  that  of  their  grandson,  Charles  Francis  Adams." 
D.  M.  Wilson,  "  Where  American  Independence  Began,"  pp.  98,  99.  This  book 
contains  several  views  of  the  house  and  many  portraits.  Tlie  house  is  still  in  the 
possession  of  the  Adams  family,  and  is  now  (1902)  occupied  as  a  summer  resi- 
dence by  Mr.  Brooks  Adams.  See  also  Three  Episodes  of  Massachusetts  His- 
tory, vol.  ii.  p.  G81. 

1  It  resulted  otherwise.     See  Memoirs  of  J.  Q.  Adams,  vol  vii.  pp.  130,  150. 

2  Treatise  on  Evidence,  by  Sir  Geoffrey  Gilbert,  chief  Baron  of  the  Exchequer, 
had  been  published  a  quarter  of  a  century;  first  edition  1761. 

3  The  Elements  of  the  Common  Law,  by  Sir  Francis  Bacon,  was  first  pub- 
lislied  in  1630,  and  had  been  in  use  as  a  text-book  for  one  hundred  and  fifty 
years. 

*  Rev.  .Jacob  Norton  (H.  C.  1786),  born  in  Abington  February  12,  1764;  son 
of  Samuel  and  grandson  of  Captain  John  Norton ;  ordained  at  Weymouth 
October  10,  1787  ;  married  Elizabeth  Cranch  February  11,  1789;  pastor  at  Wey- 
mouth 1787-1824;  died  at  Billerica  January  17,  1858;  "a  tali,  erect,  spare  man 
of  dignified  appearance."     Nash,  Sketch  of  Weymouth,  pp.  170,  171. 

s  Kev.  Thaddeus  Fiske  (II.  C  1785),  born  in  Weston  June  22,  17G2  ;  pastor 
at  Menotomy  (now  Arlington)  1788-1828;  married  June  17,  1789,  Lucy,  daughter 
of  Rev.  Jonas  Clarke,  of  Lexington  ;  died  in  Charlestown  November  14,  1855. 
Cutter,  Hist,  of  Arlington,  pp.  240-242. 


128  DIAKY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

a  stage  on  his  way.  He  is  paying  his  addresses  to  Miss  Betsey  Cranch, 
and  will,  I  suppose,  marry  her,  unless  some  particular  accident  should 
intervene.  He  was  ordained  last  fall  at  Weymouth,  in  the  parish  where 
my  grandfather  Smith  was  settled  ;  and  he  is  said  to  be  a  young  man 
of  good  sense  and  a  good  disposition. 

23d.  The  weather  was  so  disagreeable  that  Mr.  Norton  gave  up  the 
thoughts  of  going  to  Menotomy,  and  return'd  to  Weymouth.  It  has 
been  very  dull  a  great  part  of  this  month.  March  was  much  more 
agreeable.  My  brothers,  however,  went  over  to  Milton  in  the  afternoon. 
I  intended  when  I  came  here  to  have  returned  yesterday  to  Cambridge  ; 
but  I  have  deferr'd  it,  and  shall  probably  still  defer  it  till  Friday.  On 
Saturday,  I  must  certainly  get  home  to  Newbury-Port;  where  by  my 
diligence  I  must  repair  the  loss  of  time  which  I  have  sustained  in  this 
town. 

24th.  Charles  went  to  Boston  this  morning,  and  brought  me  back 
some  letters  from  P^urope.  I  went  in  the  forenoon  with  Miss  Betsey 
Cranch  down  to  Mrs.  Quincy's,  where  she  intends  to  spend  a  few  days ; 
but  I  did  not  see  either  of  the  ladies  there.  Miss  Quincy  has  in  some 
measure  recovered  from  the  illness  occasioned  by  a  mistake  in  taking  a 
medicine.  I  spent  my  time  this  day,  as  I  have  every  day  since  I  came 
here,  somewhat  miscellaneously. 

25th.  I  left  Braintree  between  nine  and  ten,  and  stopp'd  about  half 
an  hour  at  Genl.  AVarren's.  He  was  gone  to  Plymouth,  but  Mrs.  War- 
ren was  at  home.  The  Genl's  political  character  has  undergone  of  late 
a  great  alteration.  Among  all  those  who  were  formerly  his  friends 
he  is  extremely  unpopular ;  while  the  insurgent  and  antifederal  party 
(for  it  is  but  one)  consider  him  in  a  manner  as  their  head,  and  have 
given  him  at  this  election  many  votes  for  lieutenant  governor.  Mrs. 
Warren  complained  that  he  had  been  abused  shamefully,  and  very  un- 
deservedly ;  but  she  thought  me  too  federal  to  talk  freely  with  me. 
I  called  for  a  few  minutes  at  George's  office,  which  he  has  lately 
opened.  I  got  to  Cambridge  a  little  before  one,  and  called  at  the 
butler's  room,  where  I  found  Mr.  Ware  and  Packard.  Dined  at  Judge 
Dana's.  Miss  Jones  was  there,  and  agreeable  as  usual.  In  the  after- 
noon I  went  to  Dr.  Williams's.  Sam  has  been  gone  about  two  months 
to  sea.  Jenny  is  still  losing  her  beauty  and  will  soon  have  none  to  lose. 
I  was  at  Abbot's  chamber  an  hour  or  two,  and  return'd  to  Mr. 
Dana's  with  Packard  to  tea.  Stedman  and  Harris,  and  my  very  good 
friend  and  classmate,  0.  Fiske,  pass'd  the  evening  there ;  and  it  was 
uncommonly  sociable.  I  had  promised  Pickman  to  meet  him  this 
day  in  Salem,  but  was  prevented  by  the  weather,  as  it  raiu'd  all  the 
afternoon.     I  forgot  to  mention  that  my  classmate  Harris  ^  dined  with 

1  A  lifelong  friend  of  J.  Q.  Adams  ;  pastor  of  the  First  Unitarian  Church, 
Dorchester,  Mass.,  for  nearly  half  a  century.    J.  Q.  Adams  wrote  of  him  April  9, 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  129 

US  at  Judge  Dana's.  lie  came  a  day  or  two  ago  from  Worcester,  where 
he  is  now  keeping  school.  It  was  feared  that  he  was  iu  a  decline,  but 
I  think  he  looks  better  than  he  did  when  we  left  College. 

2Gth.  Between  five  and  six  this  morning,  I  left  the  Judge's  house 
with  Mr.  Andrews,  who  is  going  to  preach  at  Newbury-Port.  We 
stopp'd  at  the  Colleges,  to  take  their  letters,  but  they  had  not  risen. 
The  clock  struck  six  as  we  went  out  of  the  College  yard.  We  break- 
fasted at  Newell's  tavern,^  and  got  into  Salem  at  about  ten  o'clock.  I 
paid  a  visit  to  Mr.  Read  ;  he  is  going  to  be  married,  and  to  a  young 
lady  with  a  large  fortune,  which  is  rather  surprizing.  I  met  Pick- 
man  in  the  street,  and  went  home  with  him.  After  sitting  a  few  min- 
utes we  walk'd  about  the  town  ;  I  went  to  see  Miss  Hazen,  who 
appears  just  as  she  did  two  years  ago.  Dined  with  Pickman,  and  at 
about  two  o'clock  Andrews  called  me,  to  proceed.  The  weather  was 
80  windy,  and  the  surf  so  great  that  we  had  some  little  difficulty  in 
getting  over  Beverley  ferry.^  We  arrived  in  Newbury-Port  at  about 
seven.  I  went  and  pass'd  a  couple  of  hours  with  Putnam.  I  then 
came  home,  and  soon  retired,  as  I  was  exceedingly  fatigued  and  felt 
very  stiff. 

27th.    I  attended  meeting  all  day,  and   heard   Mr.  Andrews.     He 

1787 :  "  Thaddeus  Mason  Harris  of  Maiden,  Middlesex,  will  be  nineteen  the 
7th  of  next  July.  As  a  scholar  he  is  respectable,  and  his  natural  abilities 
are  far  from  contemptible ;  he  has  a  taste  for  poetry  and  painting  wliich  wants 
cultivation,  and  a  benevolent  heart  which  wants  judgment  to  direct  it.  He  has 
a  great  sliare  of  sensibility,  which  has  led  him  into  an  excessive  fondness  for 
pathetic  composition ;  so  tliat  all  liis  exercises  appear  to  be  attempts  to  rouse 
tlie  passions,  though  frequently  the  subject  itselt  will  not  admit  of  passion. 
His  speaking  is  injured  by  tlie  same  fault;  for  in  endeavouring  to  call  up  the 
affections  of  his  hearers,  he  runs  into  a  canting  manner,  which  disgusts  instead 
of  pleasing.  This  failing  is  however  amiable,  because  it  proceeds  from  the 
warmth  of  his  heart.  His  disposition  I  believe  to  be  very  good,  and  if  the 
picture  is  a  little  shaded  by  vanity,  a  foible  so  universal  ought  to  meet  always 
with  our  indulgence.  His  constitution  is  feeble,  and  his  circumstances  are 
penurious,  but  his  spirit  is  independent,  and  his  mind  is  cheerful."  October  3, 
1789,  Samuel  Putnam  wrote  from  Newburyport  to  J.  Q.  Adams  in  Braintree: 
"Our  friend  and  classmate  Harris  preach't  here  the  Sunday  after  Andrews's 
return.  He  was  very  ingenious,  but  his  voice  was  very  low.  His  manner  is 
solemn.  On  the  whole  he  has  improved  surprisingly.  He  went  to  our  club  and 
appeared  at  least  to  be  as  happy  as  any  of  us." 

1  Newell's  inn,  the  most  ancient  tavern  in  Lynn  and  one  of  the  most  cele- 
brated in  the  country.  Situated  at  the  midway  point  on  the  road  from  Boston  to 
Salem,  in  a  picturesque  spot  above  the  Saugus  River  within  sight  of  the  sea,  kept 
by  a  long  succession  of  hospitable  landlords,  it  had  been  the  favorite  resting- 
place  of  travellers  to  tlie  eastward  from  Boston  for  over  a  century,  and  continued 
80  until  the  new  turnpike  from  Salem  to  Boston  was  opened  in  1803,  and  di- 
verted travel  from  the  old  road.  From  Governors  Bradstreet  and  Endicott  to 
Presidents  Washington  and  Adams,  it  counted  among  its  guests  most  of  the 
prominent  men  of  the  time. 

2  Five  months  later  they  could  have  crossed  on  the  Essex  Bridge. 

17 


130  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

speaks  very  well,  and  his  composition  was,  I  believe,  generally  pleasing. 
1  sometimes  think  that  he  mistakes  his  genius,  and  imagines  that  his 
fancy  is  lively  and  his  first  thoughts  the  best ;  while  in  truth  his  con- 
ception is  naturally  slow,  and  he  ought  to  study  greatly  his  writings. 
He  was  this  day  very  brilliant  in  his  expressions  and  flowery  in  his 
periods,  but  his  thoughts  were  rather  too  much  in  the  common  run,  and 
this  fault  I  have  frequently  observed  in  his  pieces.  In  the  beginning 
of  the  evening,  I  called  at  Mr.  Tufts's,  to  give  him  a  watch  which  I 
brought  for  him.  I  spent  the  remainder  of  the  evening,  and  supp'd  at 
Deacon  Thompson's.  Walk'd  with  Mr.  Andrews  up  to  Mrs.  Farnham's, 
where  he  lodges ;  he  proposes  to  return  to-morrow  to  Cambridge. 

28th.  Dull  weather.  "Wind  north-east.  It  began  to  rain  a  little 
after  noon,  and  continued  all  the  rest  of  the  day.  I  pass'd  the  evening 
at  Dr.  Swett's.  "We  play'd  whist,  and  I  was  somewhat  unfortunate. 
Little  came  home  and  lodg'd  with  me  ;  the  weather  being  so  bad  that 
he  could  not  conveniently  go  to  Newbury.  \. 

29th.  The  weather  this  day  was  tolerable.  I  went  in  the\vening 
with  Thompson  to  Captain  Coombs's,  where  we  found  the  young 
ladies.  Polly  Coombs  is  very  sick ;  they  fear  in  a  consumption. 
Nancy  Jenkins  too  has  been  unwell,  and  still  looks  thin.  Mr.  Farnham 
and  J.  Greenleaf  were  there  ;  and  Mr.  Cutler.     We  had  singing  as  usual. 

30th.  "Very  agreeable  weather.  After  we  had  done  at  the  office,  I 
took  a  long  walk  with  Thompson.  "We  then  went  to  Mrs.  Emery's, 
where  we  found  Miss  Roberts.  We  there  pass'd  a  couple  of  hours, 
and  from  thence  went  to  Mr.  Frazier's.  We  found  ourselves  in  the 
midst  of  a  large  company  of  young  folks.  All  the  College  lads,  and 
all  the  young  misses  of  that  sett.  We  past  about  an  hour  with  them, 
and  then  without  much  reluctance  left  them. 

Thursday,  May  1st,  1788. 

Pickman  returned  this  afternoon  from  Salem.  The  Club  were  in 
the  evening  at  my  room.  Young  Fowle,^  Thompson's  poetical  class- 
mate, spent  the  evening  with  us.  Pickman  went  off  quite  early.  He 
attended  a  ball  in  Salem  last  evening,  and  what  with  the  fatigue  of 
dancing,  and  that  of  riding  this  day,  he  was  tired  out. 

2d.  After  passing  the  day  at  the  office,  I  stroll'd  with  Pickman  as 
far  as  Sawyer's  tavern,  where  we  stopp'd  and  took  a  dish  of  tea.  When 
we  set  out  to  return  there  was  a  little  sprinkling  of  rain,  which  we 
thought  was  not  sufficient  to  stay  our  progress ;  but  it  kept  continually 
increasing  till  it  became  quite  a  smart  rain,  and  by  that  time  we  were  so 
much  soak'd  that  we  concluded  the  sooner  we  should  get  home  would 

1  Robert  Fowle  (H.  C.  1786),  born  in  Newburyport  August  31,  1766;  ordained 
to  the  priesthood  of  the  Episcopal  cliurch  at  Portsmouth,  N.  U.,  in  1791 ;  minister 
at  Holderness,  N.  H. ;  died  there  October,  1847. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  131 

be  the  better.  As  soon  as  I  got  home  I  was  obliged  to  change  from 
head  to  foot.     Pickman  said  it  was  one  of  the  agreeable  rubs  of  life. 

3d.  I  this  day  got  through  the  4th  volume  of  Blackstoue's  Com- 
mentaries a  second  time,  and  I  imagine  I  have  derived  no  less  benefit 
from  a  second  perusal  than  I  did  from  the  first.  I  have  been  longer 
about  it  than  I  wish'd ;  but  the  interruption  of  an  whole  fortnight  by 
a  journey  prolonged  the  time  which  I  took  for  reading  this  book, 
greatly.  In  the  evening  I  took  a  long  walk  with  Pickman  and 
Thompson,  and  as  we  were  returning,  we  met  Mr.  Andrews,  who  was 
coming  from  Cambridge.     Nothing  new.     Dull  weather. 

4th.  I  heard  Mr.  Andrews  preach ;  his  sermons  were  both  very 
short,  but  better,  I  think,  than  those  he  delivered  last  Sunday.  His  text 
was  "  If  they  believe  not  Moses  and  the  prophets,  neither  would  they 
be  persuaded  though  one  rose  from  the  dead."  Pickman  observed  that 
there  was  a  sermon  of  Archbishop  Tillotson,^  from  the  same  text, 
and  the  similarity  is  such  as  proves  that  Mr.  Andrews  had  read  it, 
though  not  so  great  as  to  charge  him  with  plagiarism.  However,  the 
people  in  this  town  are  so  bigotted  that  a  man  of  Mr.  Andrews's 
liberal  religious  sentiments  will  not  be  half  so  popular  a  preacher  as 
one  who  would  rant  and  rave  and  talk  nonsense  for  an  hour  together 
in  his  sermon.  I  wrote  a  long  letter  to  ray  brother  Tom,  which  I 
gave  to  Mr.  Andrews,  with  whom  I  pass'd  the  evening  at  Mr.  Brad- 
bury's. Dr.  Sawyer  and  Mr.  Farnham  were  likewise  there.  Parson 
Carey  is  still  very  unwell,  insomuch  that  there  are  but  little  hopes  of 
his  ever  recovering  so  as  to  attend  constantly  to  the  duties  of  his  pro- 
fession. Mr.  Andi'ews  is  engaged  to  supply  our  pulpit  three  Sundays 
more.     After  which  he  is  under  other  engagements  till  Commencement. 

5th.  I  began  this  morning  at  the  office  upon  Foster's  Crown  Law,^ 
a  book  admirably  written,  I  am  told,  and  notwithstanding  the  barren- 
ness of  the  subject  as  entertaining  as  it  is  instructive.  I  pass'd  an 
hour  in  the  beginning  of  the  evening  at  Mrs.  Hooper's  and  then  went 
with  Thompson  to  Mr.  S.  Hooper's.  Miss  Roberts  was  there ;  I  think 
I  have  already  mentioned  this  lady :  she  is  uncommonly  sensible,  and 
if  she  has  not  the  advantages  of  youth  and  beauty,  neither  is  she 
chargeable  with  its  thoughtlessness  and  nonsence.  Mr.  Hooper,  as 
usual,  talk'd  rather  more  of  himself  than  of  any  body  or  any  thing 
else;   but  was  very  complaisant. 

6th.  In  the  beginning  of  the  evening,  I  took  a  walk  with  Pick- 
man,  up  to  Mrs.  Atkins's.     "We  found  only  the  old  lady  at  home ;  and 

1  Sermon  preached  by  Archbishop  Tillotson  at  Whitehall,  1678.  Sermons 
on  several  Subjects  and  Occasions  by  the  most  Reverend  Dr.  John  Tillotson, 
Late  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  (London,  1748),  vol.  vii.  p.  332. 

2  Discourses  upon  a  Few  Branches  of  the  Crown  Law  by  Sir  Michael  Foster 
had  been  in  use  by  law  students  for  twenty-six  years,  having  been  first  published 
in  1702  as  a  part  of  a  larger  work. 


132  DIARY  OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

she  was  so  unwell  that  we  supposed  company  would  not  be  very 
agreeable  to  her,  and  soon  came  away.  We  met  Thompson  just  as  we 
were  coming  out,  he  turn'd  about,  and  came  back  with  us,  I  have  little 
to  say.  That  part  of  my  time  which  is  best  improved  is  productive  of 
nothing  which  may  properly  be  recorded  here;  and  as  these  volumes, 
or  the  greater  part  of  their  contents,  are  only  an  account  of  the  occur- 
rences of  my  idle  hours,  they  must  be  proportionably  trifling  and  insig- 
nificant. While  I  was  in  College  these  books  were  useful,  as  they 
contained  copies  of  all  my  compositions,  which  I  wished  to  preserve ; 
but  since  I  graduated,  I  have  scarcely  composed  any  thing,  and  indeed  I 
have  been  much  too  negligent  in  that  respect ;  but  with  so  many  other 
objects  to  engross  my  attention  and  employ  my  time,  I  have  perhaps 
some  excuse. 

7th.  The  weather  was  very  fine ;  I  took  a  long  walk  in  the  even- 
ing with  Thompson  and  Putnam.  Thompson  left  us,  and  went  to  see 
Parson  S[)ring.  Putnam  came  home,  and  past  the  remainder  of  the 
evening  with  me.  I  have  used  myself  for  several  days  past  to  rise 
very  early,  and  should  wish  to  do  so  through  the  summer;  but  my 
propensity  to  sleep  is  so  great  that  it  is  almost  always  impossible  for 
me  to  awake  so  soon  as  I  wish. 

8th.  The  town  met  this  afternoon  to  make  choice  of  representa- 
tives for  the  ensuing  year.  Jona.  Greenleaf,  Esqr,^  Theop.  Parsons, 
Esqr.,  Captn.  W.  Coombs  and  Mr.  Jonan.  Marsh"  were  the  persons 
elected.  We  met  in  the  evening  at  Putnam's  lodgings.  Stacey 
desired  to  join  the  Club,  and  was  accordingly  received.  Little  did 
not  come,  and,  as  we  began  to  be  impatient,  we  sent  over  to  Dr.  Swett's 
for  him,  but  they  sent  us  word  that  he  was  gone  to  be  inoculated  for 
the  small  pox.  This  disorder  was  introduced  by  a  mistake  of  Dr. 
Smith,  in  consequence  of  which  a  number  of  jiersons  have  been  in- 
oculated, and  removed  to  the  pest  house.  Little  went  without  leave 
or  licence,  and  is  liable  to  prosecution  for  so  doing;  but  in  his  cir- 
cumstances, I   think,  he  was  very  excusable  in  running  the  risk. 

9th.  Violent  north-east  storm,  all  day.  We  all  dined  with  Mr. 
Parsons.     Thompson  pass'd  the  evening  with  me.     This  storm  gives 

1  Jonathan  Greenleaf,  born  July,  1723,  in  Newbury,  began  life  a  poor  boy  as 
an  apprentice  to  a  sliip-builder ;  married  at  twenty-one  Mary  Presbury,  the 
daughter  of  his  employer;  carried  on  the  business  in  person  for  over  twenty 
years;  then  entered  public  life  and  held  office  almost  constantly  from  17G8  to 
1792,  representing  the  town  in  the  Legislature  before,  during,  and  after  the  War 
of  the  Revolution;  was  a  member  of  the  "Essex  Junto,"  and  known  as  "old 
silver  tongue"  from  his  skill  in  persuading  political  opponents;  was  an  elder  in 
the  Presbyterian  church;  died  May  24, 1807.  See  histories  of  Newburyport ;  also 
J.  E.  Greenleaf,  Genealogy  of  the  Greenleaf  Family,  pp.  12,  17,  132,  133,  177, 
405,  408. 

2  Jonathan  Marsh,  a  member  of  the  first  Committee  of  Safety  of  the  town, 
represented  it  in  the  Legislature  1788-1791, 1799-1805 ;  died  March  7, 1825. 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  133 

me  some  anxiety,  as  possibly  Callahan  may  be  now  upon  the  coast. 
I  would  hope  however  for  the  best. 

10th.  The  storm  continued  all  this  day,  and  rather  with  increas- 
ing violence.  Thompson  and  I  again  dined  with  Mr.  Parsons.  I 
passed  the  evening  with  Putnam,  at  his  lodgings.  I  this  day  got 
through  Foster,  and  have  been  more  pleased  than  with  any  professional 
book  I  have  hitherto  read  ;  not  even  Blackstone  excepted.  The  sub- 
ject indeed  being  the  Pleas  of  the  Crown  is  not  so  immediately  con- 
nected with  a  young  lawyer's  practice  as  many  other  books ;  l3ut  as 
Foster  always  ascends  to  first  principles,  his  reasoning  may  by  anal- 
ogy apply  to  very  difTerent  branches.  The  style  is  nervous  and  ele- 
gant, suitable  to  the  dignity  of  the  author ;  and  the  "  pride  of  virtue," 
as  he  himself  expresses  it,  shines  forth  in  every  page  of  the  perfor- 
mance. What  increases  greatly  the  pleasure  with  which  this  book 
is  read,  is  that  the  writer  appears  not  only  a  learned  and  judicious 
lawyer  but  an  excellent  man.  The  encomiums  which  he  justly  bestows 
upon  Sir  Thos.  Abney  are  said  to  be  applicable  in  a  still  more  eminent 
manner  to  himself.  And  after  all,  the  virtues  of  the  heart  have  a 
greater  claim  even  to  our  veneration  and  esteem  than  all  the  splendid 
appendages  of  genius.     The  compliment  which  Thompson  pays  to  Pope, 

For  though  not  sweeter  his  own  Homer  sings, 
Yet  in  his  life  the  more  endearing  song,i 

is  more  to  his  honour  than  the  most  laboured  panegyric  that  ever 
was  composed,  of  his  talents.  I  have  undertaken  to  read  Hume's 
History  of  England  ^  again.  It  is  almost  seven  years  since  I  read  it, 
and  the  connexion  of  important  events  in  that  kingdom  has  almost 
been  obliterated  from  my  memory. 

11th.  I  attended  meeting  to  hear  Parson  Barnard^  of  Salem.  He 
gave  us  two  very  excellent  sermons ;  and  his  prayers  were  admirable, 
which  is  something  very  uncommon.  I  am  told  indeed  that  he  regu- 
larly composes  this  part  of  the  service,  as  well  as  his  sermons ;  an 
example  worthy  of  imitation.  His  address  for  Mr.  Carey  was  tender 
and  affectionate,  and  the  manner  in  which  he  spoke  it  vi'as  truly  affect- 
ing.    Thompson  and  Putnam  pass'd  the  evening  with  me. 

1  Thomson,  Seasons  :  "Winter. 

2  Hume's  History  was  written  between  tlie  years  1752  and  1761 :  the  first  vol- 
ume, covering  the  reis^ns  of  James  I.  and  Charles  I.,  was  published  in  1754;  the 
last  two  (Julius  Caisar  to  Henry  VII.)  in  17C1. 

3  Rev.  Thomas  Barnard  (H.  C.  1766),  pastor  of  the  North  Church  in  Salem 
1773-1814;  was  descended  from  a  ministerial  family  —  liis  brother,  father,  grand- 
father, and  great-grandfather  being  all  ministers  in  Massachusetts.  He  was 
born  in  Newbury,  and  his  sister  was  the  wife  of  the  Rev.  John  Tucker,  D.D.,  of 
the  First  Parish  Church  of  that  town.  See  Rev.  John  Prince, "  Sermon  preached 
...  on  the  Death  of  .  .  .  Rev.  Thomas  Barnard,"  1814. 


134  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

12Lb,  I  liave  been  quite  unwell  these  two  or  three  days  past;  a 
disorder  recurs  witii  which  I  have  been  troubled  in  the  spring,  the  two 
years  back  ;  and  it  is  more  inconvenient  this  time  than  it  ever  has 
been  before.  At  Mr.  Parsons's  recommendation,  I  have  this  day 
taken  up  Hawkins's  Pleas  of  the  Crown. -^  I  think  I  should  not  now 
have  selected  this  book,  had  it  been  left  at  my  option.  This  branch  of 
the  law  will  be  of  no  service  to  me  within  these  seven  years,  and 
there  are  many  subjects  which  will  be  more  immediately  necessary. 
Tlie  theories  relating  to  civil  actions  will  surely  be  sufficient  to  employ 
all  my  time  for  the  remainder  of  my  three  years,  and  I  shall  certainly 
have  enough  leisure  time  afterwards  to  acquire  a  competent  knowledge 
of  the  criminal  law,  before  I  get  to  the  Supreme  Court,  if  I  ever  do. 
However,  Mr.  Parsons  must  know  better  than  I  what  is  to  be  done 
in  this  case ;  and  I  therefore  cheerfully  submit  to  his  directions.  I 
took  a  long,  solitary  walk  this  evening,  and  then  came  home  and 
amused  myself  for  a  half  an  hour  with  my  flute. 

loth.  I  took  a  walk  with  Pickraau  up  to  Sawyer's  tavern,  and 
drank  tea  there.  The  evenings  are  now  so  short  that  it  was  nine 
o'clock  before  we  got  back.  Our  future  prospects  in  life  were  the 
subject  of  our  conversation.  The  appearance  before  him  is  very  fair, 
—  his  father  is  a  man  of  large  fortune,  which  although  divided  among 
several  children  gives  each  of  them  a  sum  sufficient  for  starting  for- 
ward. He  will  now  in  a  few  months  be  ready  to  enter  upon  the  pro- 
fession ;  he  is  paying  his  addresses  to  a  young  lady  whose  fortune  will 
probably  be  amply  sufficient ;  and  from  appearances  I  should  judge  he 
will  be  married  ere  long.  Yet  even  he  is  anxious  for  his  future  wel- 
fare, and  how  much  greater  reason  have  I  to  look  forward  with  ter- 
ror. I  have  two  long  years  yet  before  me,  which  must  be  wholly 
employ'd  in  study,  to  qualify  myself  for  any  thing.  I  have  no  fortune 
to  expect  from  any  part,  and  the  profession  is  so  much  crowded  that  I 
have  no  prospect  of  supporting  myself  by  it  for  several  years  after  I 
begin.  These  are  great  causes  of  discouragement ;  but  my  only  hope 
and  comfort  is  that  diligence,  industry,  and  health  may  overcome 
them  all. 

14th.  I  walk'd  with  Thompson  up  to  Mrs.  Atkins's.  The  old  lady  is 
gone  to  Boston  to  spend  a  fortnight.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Searle  ^  were  there ; 
and  Mr.  Atkins  came  home  soon  after.     Atkins  is  a  man  of  abilities, 

1  The  Pleas  of  tlie  Crown  by  William  Hawkins  had  been  in  use  for  over  seventy 
years;  1st  edit.  1716. 

2  Mrs.  Searle  (Mary  Russell  Atkins)  was  Mrs.  Atkins's  eldest  daughter;  born 
1753;  married,  1779,  George  Searle,  a  merchant  in  Newburyport;  died  1836  in 
Boston.  Mrs.  Atkins  was  probably  visiting  Mrs.  Samuel  Eliot,  her  daughter. 
Catherine  Atkins,  born  1758,  married.  May  14,  1786,  Samuel  Eliot,  a  merchant  in 
Boston,  grandfather  of  President  Eliot  of  Harvard  University.  F.  11.  Atkins, 
Joseph  Atkins,  The  Story  of  a  Family,  pp.  72,  73,  77-80. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  135 

but  of  strong  passions  ;  and,  as  he  was  cramped  in  his  youth  by  his  penu- 
rious circumstances,  his  disposition  was  soured  and  he  is  now  excessively 
irritable,  and  his  natural  frankness  has  degenerated  to  the  unfeeling 
bluntness  of  a  cynic.  He  has  now  the  expectancy  of  a  considerable 
fortune,  at  the  decease  of  an  aged  relation  ;  and  it  is  to  be  hoped  that 
when  that  circumstance  takes  place,  it  may  soften  his  temper  and  recon- 
cile him  more  to  his  fellow  mortals.  I  still  continue  quite  unwell ;  it 
has  had  one  good  effect  at  least,  that  of  making  me  rise  early  for 
several  days  past. 

loth.  Club  met  this  evening  at  Pickman's  —  all  there  but  Little,  who 
is  going  through  the  small  pox.  Mr.  Farnham  was  there;  the  even- 
ing was  agreeable.  Pickman  left  us  at  half  after  eight,  to  call  on  a 
lady  who  came  this  afternoon  from  Salem.  After  nine  we  took  a 
walk  of  a  mile  or  two  before  we  retired ;  just  as  I  got  home  I  met 
a  number  of  people  who  had  just  come  from  the  town-house,  where,  it 
seems,  they  were  entertained  with  a  concert  this  evening. 

16th.  Took  a  walk  after  leaving  the  office,  with  Thompson  and 
Putnam.  We  were  for  calling  in  at  Mr,  Frazier's,  to  see  the  young 
girls,  but  upon  the  presumption  they  were  not  there  I  would  not  stop  ; 
accordingly  we  proceeded.  Thompson  left  us.  Putnam  was  very  impa- 
tient, but  just  as  we  had  turn'd  the  corner  into  High  Street,  both  Miss 
Fraziers,  and  Putnam's  own  Harriet  appeared.  He  was  as  happy  as 
present  enjoyment  can  render  any  one.  We  walk'd  with  the  girls,  and 
after  conducting  them  home  took  our  leave.  Putnam  afterwards 
called  to  see  me.  He  had  no  idea  of  meeting  the  girls,  nor  did  he 
even  suspect  that  Harriet  could  be  with  them.  The  most  exception- 
able part  of  this  young  fellow's  character  is  a  spirit  of  deception,  a 
disposition  to  be  cunning,  even  in  the  most  trifling  occurrences  of  life, 
in  which  a  complicated  policy  would  require  an  appearance  of  the 
greatest  candour  and  frankness.  He  is  deeply  smitten  with  his  Harriet ; 
every  look,  and  every  action  afford  demonstration  strong  of  this.  Yet 
he  pretends  to  deny  it.  He  is  sure  to  meet  her  every  evening ;  and 
yet  he  boldly  declares  that  it  never  happens  but  by  accident.  Upon 
this  subject,  it  is  true,  his  friends  have  no  right  to  catechise  him  ;  but 
he  himself  leads  the  way  by  making  declarations  which  any  person  of 
common  sense,  and  any  ways  conversant  with  him,  must  know  to  be 
totally  repugnant  with  the  truth.  We  laugh  at  him  for  this  conduct, 
but  he  does  not  appear  sensible  how  much  it  lessens  our  esteem  for 
him.  And  he  still  attempts  to  carry  on  a  deception,  which  we  have 
told  him  was  long  since  detected. 

17th.  Dined  at  Judge  Greenleaf's,  with  Pickman  and  Thompson. 
Two  Miss  Daltous  were  there,  and  Miss  Deblois,  a  young  lady  whose 
brother  is  paying  his  addresses  to  the  eldest  Miss  Dalton.  Miss  Debloia 
has  been  much  celebrated  as  a  beauty ;  and  she  may  still  be  called  very 


136  DIARY  OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

handsome,  though  she  be  as  much  as  twenty-seven.  She  is  sociable 
and  agreeable,  though  she  is  not  yet  wholly  destitute  of  that  kind 
of  vanity  which  is  so  naturally  the  companion  of  beauty.  She  puckers 
her  mouth  a  little,  and  contracts  her  eye-lids  a  little,  to  look  very  pretty  ; 
and  is  not  wholly  unsuccessful.  The  Miss  Daltons,  as  usual,  talk'd 
more  about  themselves  and  the  family  than  any  thing  else.  The 
eldest  is  said  to  be  blest  with  a  very  amiable  disposition,  and  as  for 
Polly,  Miss  Deblois  said  she  made  her  laugh  yesterday  beyond  meas- 
ure, and  it  is  well  she  has  the  talent  of  exciting  laughter  in  others ;  for 
unless  her  countenance  very  much  belies  her  she  is  seldom  guilty  of 
such  a  trick  herself.  Judge  Greenleafs  daughters  are  always  so  much 
addicted  to  silence  that,  although  I  have  been  in  company  with  them  a 
number  of  times,  I  know  not  what  opinion  to  form  of  them.  In  the 
afternoon,  I  took  a  long  walk  with  Thompson  and  Putnam.  The 
weather  was  very  dull  and  disagreeable.  Thompson  stopp'd  at  Mrs. 
Atkins's.     I  pass'd  the  evening  with  Putnam,  at  his  lodgings. 

18th.  Mr.  McKeen  ^  of  Beverley  preached  at  Mr.  Carey's  this  day. 
I  attended  to  hear  him.  His  discourses  were,  though  sensible,  calcu- 
lated to  please  the  generality  of  the  audience ;  I  did  not  like  them  so 
well  as  those  of  Mr.  Barnard  the  last  Sunday.  After  meeting,  Pick- 
man  called  upon  me,  and  I  went  up  with  him  to  see  Mr.  Jackson, 
where  we  drank  tea  and  pass'd  the  evening.  Mr.  McKeen  and  Mr. 
Farnham  were  there,  but  went  away  soon  after  tea.  Miss  "Wendell 
was  likewise  with  Mrs.  Jackson.  She  is  not  handsome,  but  is  said  to 
be  very  amiable.  A  little  after  nine  I  came  away  ;  Pickman  still 
remaining  there. 

19  th.  Began  upon  the  second  book  of  Hawkins.  The  first  treats  of 
all  offences  against  the  public;  and  this  of  the  punishments  to  which 
they  are  liable.  I  walk'd  with  Thompson  in  the  evening;  we  called 
at  Mrs.  Hooper's,  and  pass'd  an  hour  there,  after  which  we  went  to 
Mr.  Carter's.     Miss  Polly  goes  to  Boston  to-morrow. 

20th.  Mr.  Parsons  had  the  frame  of  his  house  raised,  and  was 
consequently  very  busy.  Walk'd  with  Pickman.  We  met  Thompson, 
and  all  went  to  see  Mr.  N.  Carter,  who  was  lately  married.  His  wife 
is  not  quite  so  stiff  in  her  manners  as  she  used  to  be,  a  year  and  an 
half  ago;  but  she  has  already  adopted  other  airs,  and  appears  no  less 
affected  than  formerly.  De  gustibus  non  est  disputandum  ;  There 's  no 
disputing  about  the  choice  of  a  wife.    Nancy  Cutts,  Mrs.  Carter's  sister, 

1  Rev.  Joseph  McKeen  (Dartmouth,  1774),  born  in  Londonderry,  N.  H., 
October  15,  1757  ;  a  teacher  in  Londonderry  ;  a  soldier  under  General  Sullivan  ; 
1785-1802  pastor  of  the  church  in  Beverly  which  the  Rev.  Joseph  Willard  left 
in  1781  to  become  President  of  Harvard  University  ;  first  President  of  Bowdoin 
College,  1802-1807  ;  died  at  Brunswick,  iMe.,  July  15,  1807.  Dartmouth  Coilefje 
General  Catalogue;  Ilurd,  Hist,  of  Essex  County,  p.  707;  Appleton,  Cyciopifidia 
of  American  Biography. 


DIARY  OF  JOHN  QUINCY  ADAMS.  137 

appears  much  more  agreeable  ;  and  upon  the  whole  I  thiuk  her  the 
handsomest  of  the  two.  However,  Mrs.  Carter  was  abundantly  cotn- 
plaisaut,  and  we  pass'd  the  evening  tolerably. 

21st.  I  walk'd  with  Pickman  in  the  evening  to  Sawyer's,  where  we 
drank  tea,  and  made  it  almost  ten  o'clock  before  we  got  home.  I  then 
went  up  with  my  flute  to  Stacey's  lodgings,  our  general  head  quarters. 
About  a  quarter  before  twelve,  Stacey,  Thompson,  Putnam,  with  a 
couple  of  young  lads  by  the  name  of  Greenough,  and  myself  sallied  forth 
upon  a  scheme  of  serenading.  We  paraded  round  the  town  till  almost 
four  in  the  morning.  The  weather,  which  was  not  very  agreeable  when 
we  first  set  out,  was  growing  worse  continually.  At  length  it  began 
to  rain  smartly,  upon  which  we  all  separated,  and  respectively  retired. 

22d.  I  was  up  before  eight,  and  had  not  slept  well  even  the  short 
time  I  was  in  bed.  I  felt  stiff  and  unfit  for  almost  everything.  I  read 
but  little  at  the  office,  and  omitted  one  thing  which  for  three  weeks 
past  has  claimed  my  attention  very  constantly.  The  Club  were  at  my 
lodgings  this  evening.  Stacey  however  went  away  somewhat  early,  to 
meet  some  of  his  friends  from  Andover ;  and  we  were  all  too  much 
fatigued  by  the  last  night's  jaunt  to  be  very  sociable  or  gay.  At  nine 
we  separated  as  usual. 

23d.  Continual  north  east  winds  have  prevailed  for  a  week  past. 
This  evening  I  past  with  Thompson  at  Captain  Coombs's.  AVe  found 
Mr.  Porter  and  Mr.  Kellogg,  two  young  parsons  there.^  The  evening 
was  tolerable,  and  something  more.  Fanny  Jenkins  was  as  easy,  aa 
good  natured,  as  talkative  as  usual.  Jenny  Coombs '^  is  sensible  and 
clever.  Her  sister  Polly,  it  is  feared,  is  in  a  consumption  —  a  dis- 
order by  which  Captain  Coombs  has  already  lost  two  of  his  children. 
Poor,  miserable  beings  we  are !  dependant  for  our  happiness,  not  only 

1  Perhaps  Ambrose  Porter  (Dartmouth,  1784),  who  entered  the  ministry,  and 
died  atLaiulaff,  N.  H.,  November  1,  1832;  and  Elijah  Kellogg  (Dartmoutli,  1786), 
Btudied  fur  the  ministry  under  Rev.  John  Murray,  of  Newburyport  (pastor  of 
Captain  Coombs);  pastor  of  a  clmrch  in  Portland,  Me.,  in  1788;  died  March  9, 
1842.     See  W.  Willis,  Hist,  of  Portland,  pp.  647-648,  659-661. 

2  Jane  Coombs,  second  child  of  William  and  Mary  Coombs ;  born  in  New- 
buryport, Mass.,  January  22,  1764 ;  married  Ebenezer  Greenleaf  in  December, 
1790  ;  united  in  1799  with  the  First  Presbyterian  Church  of  Newburyport,  of 
which  Dr.  Daniel  Dana  was  pastor;  extremely  active  in  religious  work,  and  is 
eaid  to  have  brought  one  hundred  converts  into  the  church.  For  thirty  years 
she  was  personally  active  in  mission-work,  and  took  the  main  responsibility  of 
providing  missionary  laborers  and  funds  for  the  Isles  of  Shoals,  then  a  com- 
munity of  some  six  hundred  fishermen.  Mrs.  Greenleaf  took  great  interest  in 
foreign  missions  and  in  the  cause  of  temperance.  Her  correspondence  with 
philanthropists  and  clergymen  was  extensive.  Her  husband  died  in  1834,  aged 
seventy  years.  She  herself  lived  to  be  more  than  eighty-seven  years  of  age. 
She  left  two  children  to  survive  her  departure,  one  of  whom  was  tlie  Rev. 
William  Coombs  Greenleaf,  of  Springfield,  111.  Her  daughter  publislied  her 
memoirs.    Manuscript  notes  of  Rev.  Horace  C.  Hovey,  D.D.,  of  Newburyport. 

18 


138  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

upon  our  own  conduct,  but  equally  upon  the  caprices  of  fortune  and 
the  casual  occurrences  of  a  day.  What  must  be  the  feelings  of  a 
parent,  who,  after  rearing  a  numerous  family  of  promising  children, 
just  as  they  are  entering  upon  the  stage  of  life,  and  when  he  begins 
to  reap  the  rewards  for  his  pains  in  educating  them  by  being  witness  to 
their  usefulness  in  the  world,  when  he  fondly  hopes  to  leave  them  in 
the  enjoyment  of  prosperous  circumstances,  to  see  them  drooping  and 
dying  under  the  operation  of  a  long,  lingering  disease,  in  which  the 
terrors  of  death  are  increased  by  its  slow  and  gradual  approaches. 
Yet,  this  is  the  situation  of  many  parents.  And  if  the  causes  of  misery 
are  thus  distributed,  as  well  to  the  virtuous  and  the  good  as  to  the 
abandoned  and  unpr'ncipled,  what  is  the  lot  we  have  to  expect  in  the 
world?  I  look  forward  with  terror;  and  by  so  much  the  more,  as 
the  total  exemption  from  any  great  evils  hitherto  leads  me  to  fear  that 
the  greatest  are  laid  up  in  store  for  me. 

24th,  Pickman  went  to  Salem  this  morning.  In  the  evening  I 
took  a  long  walk  with  Thompson,  down  towards  Newbury  Bridge,^  in 
hopes  of  meeting  Mr.  Andrews  ;  we  were,  however,  unsuccessful.  When 
we  returned,  I  stop'd  and  past  an  hour  with  Putnam.  He  told  mo 
they  had  received  a  letter  at  Mr.  Bradbury's  from  Andrews,  informing 
them  that  his  health  would  necessarily  prevent  him  from  coming  to- 
morrow, but  that  he  will  send  somebody,  if  he  can,  to  supply  his  place. 

25th.  Mr.  Webber  preach'd  here  for  Mr.  Andrews ;  and  I  was  much 
pleased  with  his  discourses.  They  were  quite  argumentative ;  and  his 
manner  of  reasoning  was  such  as  shewed  him  to  be  an  acute  metaphy- 
sician. He  has  always  had  a  peculiar  attachment  to  mathematical 
studies,  and  has  acquired  great  knowledge  in  that  branch  of  science, 
which  has  at  the  same  time  habituated  him  to  a  degree  of  precision  in 
his  reasoning  which  few  people  possess.  After  meeting  this  afternoon 
Putnam  called  at  my  room,  and  urged  me  to  go  to  Mr.  Spring's,  where, 
it  seems,  they  were  not  contented  with  two  services,  but  were  going 
upon  a  third.  Putnam  went,  1  believe,  ntther  from  the  motive  of  see- 
ing certain  young  ladies  there  than  from  an  excess  of  piety.  But  as 
I  wished  to  write  a  letter  to  W.  Cranch,  and  as  Mr.  Parsons  will  go 
for  Boston  early  to-morrow  morning,  I  declined  going  with  Putnam. 
After  writing  my  letter  I  went  and  took  a  long  walk  quite  alone,  the 
weather  being  very  fine,  and  as  I  return'd  I  stopp'd  an  hour  at  Mrs. 
Hooper's,  Thompson  came  in  soon  after  me.  We  walk'd  again,  and 
as  we  were  passing  before  Mr.  Frazier's  door,  the  young  ladies  were 
standing  there.     We  stopp'd  and  went  in.     Mr.  and  Mrs.  Frazier  re- 

1  Newbury  or  Parker  Kiver  Bridge,  with  its  nine  piers  and  eight  wooden 
arches,  dating  from  1758  though  rebuilt  in  1784,  was  four  miles  from  Newbury- 
port  on  the  road  to  Boston.  "  Quid  Newbury,"  pp.  6o0-539.  No  bridge  had  as 
yet  been  built  across  the  Merrimac. 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  139 

turn'd  home  a  few  miuutes  after,  with  Miss  Phillips  of  Boston,  a  lady 
whom  1  saw  at  Hingham  last  fall,  who  has  phiy'd  the  coquette,  for 
eight  or  ten  years  past,  with  a  number  of  gentlemen,  but  who  lias  now 
a  prospect  of  being  married  shortly.  We  soon  came  away  ;  Thompson 
pass'd  an  hour  at  my  lodgings. 

26th.  In  the  afternoon,  I  took  a  walk  with  Thompson  to  see  Little. 
He  has  the  small  pox  full  upon  him  at  this  time.  We  returned,  and  I 
pass'd  the  evening  at  Mrs.  Emery's.  Judge  Greenleaf's  daughters 
and  Miss  Smith  and  Miss  Wendell  were  there.  The  evening  was  not 
agreeable  ;  there  was  too  much  ceremony  and  too  little  sociability.  We 
conducted  the  ladies  home,  and  retired. 

27th.  Mr.  Jackson  sent  one  of  his  sons  to  inform  me  that  he  heard 
last  evening,  at  Beverly,  that  Callahan  had  arrived  in  Boston.  The 
report  I  find  is  all  over  the  town  ;  and  I  have  received  the  congratu- 
lations of  almost  all  my  acquaintance  here.  This  evening,  by  means 
of  an  accident  which  was  contrived  in  the  morning,  a  number  of  gentle- 
men and  ladies  happened  to  meet  at  Mr.  Brown's  house,  where  we 
danced  till  about  twelve  o'clock.  The  weather  was  rather  too  warm ; 
otherwise  the  party  was  agreeable.  We  often  changed  partners. 
And,  as  there  were  several  more  ladies  than  gentlemen,  one  or  two 
of  the  young  misses  thought  they  were  not  sufficiently  noticed,  and  so 
much  mistook  the  intrinsic  value  and  importance  of  their  resentment 
as  to  display  it  in  a  manner  which  raised  an  involuntary  smile,  —  in- 
voluntary, I  say,  because  no  one  surely  could  willingly  smile  at  the 
resentment  of  a  lady.  I  escorted  Miss  Newell  home  ;  and  then  retired 
likewise  myself. 

28th.  Election  Day.  And  there  is  not  a  poor  devil  who  has  lost 
his  election  in  the  Commonwealth  that  feels  half  so  much  vexed  and 
disappointed  as  I  do.  After  enjoying  the  satisfaction  of  supposing  my 
friends  all  arrived  safe,  I  find  this  day  that  the  report  was  without  any 
foundation ;  that  Callahan  has  not  arrived,  and  has  not  even  been 
spoken  with,  as  has  been  said.  I  walk'd  in  the  evening  with  Stacey, 
and  called  afterwards  for  half  an  hour  at  Mrs.  Hooper's. 

29th.  Club  at  Thompson's  this  evening.  Putnam  inform'd  us,  he 
must  leave  us  at  a  quarter  before  nine.  1  told  him  he  must  make  no 
appointments  for  Thursday  evenings.  It  was  no  appointment,  he  said ; 
but  he  was  under  an  indispensible  obligation  to  write  a  letter  this 
evening:  accordingly  he  left  us.  At  nine  we  likewise  came  away.  I 
took  a  walk  with  Stacey  in  High  Street,  with  the  expectation  of  meet- 
ing Putnam  ;  nor  were  we  disappointed.  He  was  walking  home  with 
the  young  ladies  that  he  is  generally  most  attentive  to.  After  we 
had  ascertained  the  matter  sufficiently,  we  continued  a  walk,  and  I  came 
home  at  about  ten.  I  found  a  bundle  for  me  which  Mr.  Carter  brought 
from  Boston,  but  there  was  no  letter  with  it. 


140  DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

30th.  I  called  this  morning  at  Mr.  Bradbury's  office,  and  affronted 
Putnam  by  rallying  him  upon  his  deception  last  night.  In  the  after- 
noon I  walked  with  Thompson ;  we  overtook  Mr.  J.  Tracy  and  his 
lady,  and  accompanied  them.  As  we  were  passing  by  Mrs.  Atkins's, 
she  arrived  with  her  son  from  Boston.  We  stopp'd  there  a  few 
minutes.  Genl.  Lincoln  is  Lieutt.  Governor,  &c.  We  spent  the  re- 
mainder of  the  evening  at  Mr.  Carter's  with  the  old  gentleman,  as 
none  of  the  young  folks  were  at  home. 

31st.  Finished  this  forenoon  with  Hawkins.  Dined  at  Mr.  N. 
Carter's.  As  did  Mr.  Faruham  and  Thompson  ;  called  at  the  office  in 
the  afternoon,  but  did  nothing.  Walk'd  with  Thompson.  Went  in 
to  Mrs.  Hooper's,  and  drank  tea  there.  Miss  Emery  was  with  her. 
I  soon  came  out  and  left  Thompson  there.  I  took  a  solitary  walk  of 
two  or  three  miles  into  Newbury  ;  was  surprised  by  the  rain,  and  quite 
sprinkled  before  I  got  home.  We  have  had  a  great  deal  of  rain  this 
season,  but  very  little  warm  weather.     Fruits  rather  backward. 

Sunday,  June  1st,  1788. 

Mr.  Allen  preached  for  us  this  day,  and  I  attended  to  hear  him ;  his 
sermons  are  judicious  and  sensible,  but  his  manner  of  delivering  them  is 
very  disagreeable.  In  the  evening  I  took  a  long  walk  with  Doctor 
Kilham,  and  pass'd  the  remainder  of  it  at  home. 

2d.  Pickman  returned  this  day  from  Salem,  where  he  has  been  for 
ten  days  past.  I  began  to  read  Wood's  Institutes ; '  a  book  written 
upon  a  similar  plan  to  that  of  Blackstone,  but  much  inferior  in  the 
execution.  I  took  a  long  walk  this  evening  alone,  musing  and  con- 
templating upon  a  subject  which  at  this  time  engrosses  all  my  attention. 

3d.  I  walk'd  with  Thompson  a  mile  or  two  in  Newbury,  the  pros- 
pects on  that  road  are  delightful,  and  I  am  more  pleased  with  that 
walk  than  with  any  other  near  this  town.  We  went  to  Judge  Green- 
leaf's.  Mrs.  Hodge  and  Mrs.  Parsons  were  there ;  we  past  the  evening 
as  usual  at  that  house,  the  Judge  was  very  sensible  and  sociable ; 
Mrs.  Greenleaf  was  very  agreeable,  and  all  the  daughters  sat  like  just  so 
many  young  misses  whose  mamma  had  told  them  that  little  girls  must 
be  seen  and  not  heard.  The  Judge  to  strangers  appears  to  be  quite  a  soft 
and  complacent  man  ;  but  his  family  regulations  are  rather  despotic  ;  this 
circumstance  takes  off  much  of  the  pleasure  of  visiting  there,  which 
would  otherwise  be  great ;  for  his  conversation  and  that  of  his  lady  are 
quite  entertaining.  She  asked  me  if  I  had  not  been  greatly  disap- 
pointed last  week ;  I  told  her  I  had,  and  that  it  had  been  a  subject  of 
much  vexation  to  me.     The  Judge  said  it  was  well,  he  always  wished 

1  Tlie  Institutes  of  tlie  Laws  of  England,  by  Thomas  Wood,  had  been  in  use 
for  nearly  seventy  years ;  1st  edition,  1720. 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  141 

that  bis  young  friends  might  meet  with  disappointments  and  misfor- 
tunes, and  the  greater  the  better,  if  they  were  not  such  as  to  debilitate 
the  mind;  it  was  best  to  be  enured  to  misfortunes  in  early  life ;  sooner 
or  later  they  would  come ;  and  it  was  much  best  to  be  prepared  for 
them  by  experience.     Thompsou  came  home,  and  supp'd  with  me. 

4th.  "Walk'd  into  Newbury  in  the  evening  with  Thompson,  and  we 
returned  through  Joppe,^  by  a  different  route  from  that  which  I  usually 
come.  We  past  an  hour  at  Mrs.  Emery's.  Her  daughter  is  very 
amiable,  though  not  handsome.  She  entertained  us  some  time  by  play- 
ing upon  the  harpsichord,  Mr.  J.  Greenleaf  was  there  ;  it  is  reported 
that  he  is  paying  his  addresses  there.  The  dispositions  of  the  persons 
are  not  sufficiently  congenial  to  render  either  of  them  happy,  and  I 
should  therefore  wish  that  this  report,  like  most  others  of  the  same 
nature,  may  prove  an  idle  surmise  without  any  foundation.  .  .  . 

6th.  ...  In  the  evening  I  was  walking  with  Thompson;  as  we 
were  passing  before  Mr.  J.  Tracy's,  he  invited  us  in.  We  pass'd  the 
evening  there :  it  was  club  night,  and  there  were  eight  or  ten  such 
smoakers  that  we  were  almost  suffocated.  The  evening,  however,  was 
agreeable;  and  after  supper  I  completed  my  walk  before  I  returned 
home. 

7th.  Mr.  Parsons  came  home  from  Boston  this  evening,  where  be 
has  been  attending  at  the  General  Court ;  but  he  brought  no  news  for 
me.  I  went  with  Pickman  up  to  Sawyer's  tavern,  and  drank  tea  there. 
This  walk  is  very  agreeable  and  employs  the  evening  well. 

8th.  Mr.  Webster  ~  from  Salisbury  preached  for  us  this  day  ;  a  vener- 
able old  gentleman  who  has  been  subject  to  many  misfortunes,  and 
whose  countenance  is  expressive  of  the  sensibility  which  has  so  often 
been  wounded.  I  took  a  long  walk  in  the  evening  with  Stacey  ;  a 
young  fellow  who  has  been  very  imprudent,  but  whose  disposition  is,  I 
believe,  very  good. 

9th.  Mr.  Parsons  had  so  much  information  to  give  every  one  who 
came  into  the  office  this  day  that  we  could  not  attend  much  to  the 
regular  course  of  our  reading.  I  took  a  long,  lonely  walk  in  the 
evening,  as  I  often  do  at  present,  and  I  find  the  practice  advantageous 
both  to  my  health  and  spirits. 

10th.  StroU'd  a  mile  or  two  with  Pickman ;  he  has  the  appearance 
of  a  true  and  faithful  lover,  and  acknowledges  that  he  takes  but  very 
little  satisfaction  in  this  town.     He  proposes  spending  but  a  few  weeks 

1  The  present-day  "  Joppa,"  then,  as  now,  a  fishing  hamlet  on  the  river-bank 
below  Newburyport.     "  Ould  Newbury,"  pp.  218,  219. 

2  Rev.  Samuel  Webster  (H.  C  1737),  born  at  Bradford  in  August,  1718; 
pastor  of  the  West  Parish  in  Salisbury  for  nearly  fifty-five  years  (1741-1796)  ; 
died  July  18,  1796;  bad  suffered  much  from  the  loss  of  many  children.  See 
Funeral  Sermon  by  the  Rev.  Thomas  Gary. 


142  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

more  here,  and  then  to  open  an  office  in  Salem.  As  I  came  home  I 
stopp'd  and  past  an  hour  at  Mrs.  Hooper's. 

11th.  I  walk'd  this  evening  with  Stacey.  The  weather  was  very 
beautiful,  and  we  proposed  to  form  a  party  for  a  serenade,  as  soon  aa 
may  be  convenient. 

12th.  Townsend  arrived  in  town  this  forenoon.  I  called  at  Mrs. 
Hooper's  to  see  him  immediately  after  dinner ;  he  looks  better  than  he 
was  when  he  left  this  town,  but  his  situation  still  appears  to  me  to  be 
critical.  Club  met  at  Pickman's.  Putnam  appeared  rather  sober. 
Townsend  was  obliged  to  retire  just  before  sunset.  Farnham  too  was 
not  in  the  highest  spirits,  for  Mr.  Prout  marries  Miss  S.  Jenkins  this 
eveninor.  At  nine  we  separated,  and  at  ten  met  again  at  my  room.  "VYe 
sallied  out  at  about  eleven,  and  serenaded  the  ladies  in  town  till 
between  three  and  four  in  the  morning. 

13tli.  Townsend  and  one  or  two  more  of  my  friends  dined  with  me 
this  day.  He  went  in  the  afternoon  to  see  Mrs.  Emery,  and  found  there 
a  Miss  Taylor  who  came  there  last  evening  from  Boston ;  she  was 
going  to  Exeter,  and  as  Townsend  was  going  to  take  a  ride,  he  pro- 
posed to  go  in  company  with  her  as  far  as  the  ferry.  This  Miss  Taylor 
is  handsome  and  remarkably  sociable ;  and  although  she  has  been  in  a 
declining  state  of  health  for  more  than  a  year  past,  and  came  very 
lately  from  Halifax  to  Boston  merely  to  recruit  her  strength,  yet  by 
some  unaccountable  deception  she  looks  in  the  finest  bloom  of  health. 
It  seems  indeed  to  be  an  uncommon  felicity  attending  many  young 
ladies  at  this  day,  that  they  can  enjoy  all  the  benefits  of  ill  health 
without  being  much  afilicted  with  its  cruel  pains.  We  accompanied  the 
lady  to  Ameshury  ;  and  after  seeing  her  into  the  boat  took  our  leave. 
Returning  home,  we  stopp'd  and  drank  tea  with  Mrs.  Atkins.  Mrs. 
Bass  and  Mr.  Atkins  had  just  arrived  from  Dunstable.  I  pass'd  the 
evening  with  Townsend  at  Mrs.  Hooper's  ;  but  came  home  quite  early, 
as  I  was  somewhat  fatigued  by  the  last  night's  expedition. 

14th.  Finished  reading  in  Wood's  Institutes  ;  a  book  which  has  been 
rendered  almost  useless  by  the  publication  of  Blackstone's  Commen- 
taries. Dined  with  Mr.  Parsons,  took  a  long  walk  in  the  afternoon, 
and  pass'd  the  evening  with  Townsend  at  Mrs.  Hooper's.  Pickman 
went  to  Salem  this  morning. 

loth.  Mr.  Allen  preach'd,  and  as  usual  delivered  a  good  sermon  in  a 
very  bad  manner.  After  meeting,  I  went  up  to  Mr.  J.  Tracy's.  I 
found  Townsend  there,  and  rode  a  few  miles  with  him.  We  return'd 
and  drank  tea  at  Mrs.  Atkins's.  Townsend's  health  not  permitting 
him  to  be  out  after  sunset,  we  came  home  early,  and  I  was  with  him 
all  the  evening. 

16th.  Townsend  intended  to  have  set  away  this  morning,  to  go  to 
Medfield  ;    but   the  weather  was  so  chilly  and  disagreeable  that   he 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  143 

thought  it  would  be  best  to  wait  another  day.  Thompson  and  I  dined 
and  pass'd  a  great  part  of  the  day  with  him.  I  was  again  disappointed 
upon  the  arrival  of  the  stage,  as  I  have  been  so  often  heretofore,  by 
hearing  no  news  from  Boston.  I  began  upon  Bacon's  Pleas  and  Plead- 
ings ;  a  subject  which  demands  great  attention. 

17th.  Townsend  left  town  this  morning,  but  as  the  wind  soon  got 
easterly,  I  imagine  he  did  not  go  far.  Mr.  Parsons  went  over  to 
Ipswich,  where  the  Supreme  Court  are  this  week  in  session.  In  the 
beginning  of  the  evening  the  weather  cleared  up,  and  I  took  a  long, 
solitary  walk.  I  had  turn'd  round,  and  was  coming  home  when  I 
heard  a  horse  coming  upon  full  galop,  and  somebody  called  me  by 
name.  I  stopped  and  found  it  was  Stacey,  who  congratulated  me  upon 
my  father's  arrival.  He  came  from  Ipswich  on  purpose  to  give  me  the 
information.  Just  as  I  had  pass'd  by  Mr.  Tracy's,  one  of  his  servants 
gave  me  a  letter,  with  a  request  that  I  would  go  down  to  his  house. 
I  went  accordingly,  and  found  Mr.  Hichborn  there  ;  the  letter  was 
from  Mr.  Thaxter,  and  contained  the  same  joyful  tidings  that  Stacey 
had  brought  me.  It  seems  Judge  Sullivan  left  Boston  this  day  at 
about  twelve  o'clock ;  and  when  he  came  away  Callahan  was  coming 
up  the  harbour ;  after  passing  an  hour  at  Mr.  Tracy's  I  came  home 
with  a  light  heart,  but  not  wholly  without  fears  that  this  information, 
like  that  of  a  similar  nature  which  has  been  given  me  three  or  four 
times  within  a  month  past,  should  be  founded  upon  a  mistake  of  one 
vessel  for  another. 

18th.  I  went  to  the  office  in  the  forenoon,  but  found  myself  incapaci- 
tated to  do  any  thing,  and  therefore  lost  the  morning  in  conversation. 
Just  before  two  I  went  with  trembling  hope  to  the  post  office ;  and  as 
I  went  into  the  door  my  heart  almost  failed  me,  but  I  was  soon  made 
happy  by  a  letter  from  my  brother  Tom,  which  confirms  the  arrival  of 
my  parents.  In  the  afternoon,  I  did  nothing  more  than  prepare  to  go 
to  Boston  in  the  stage  to-morrow  morning.  I  called  in  the  evening  at 
Mrs.  Hooper's  and  at  Mr.  Carter's,  to  take  their  commands. 

19th.  The  stage  was  full  from  Portsmouth,  and  consequently  I  could 
not  obtain  a  seat.  I  could  not  think  of  waiting  till  Saturday  with  a 
chance  of  being  again  disappointed,  so  I  sent  forward  my  little  trunk 
by  the  stage,  and  engaged  a  horse ;  at  about  ten  in  the  forenoon  I  left 
town  and  arrived  at  Ipswich  just  before  noon.  The  Supreme  Court 
are  sitting  there,  and  I  went  to  the  Court  house,  where  I  saw  a  number 
of  my  friends ;  among  others  my  classmate  Kendall,^  who  is  going  to  the 

^  "  Ephraim  Kendall  of  Ipswich,  Essex  Co.,  was  twenty  the  28th  of  last  Novr. 
There  is  something  peculiar  in  this  character.  He  is  said  to  be  one  of  the  hardest 
students  and  one  of  the  poorest  scholars  in  the  class.  His  natural  abilities  are 
80  small  that  they  can  scarcely  be  improved  even  by  cultivation.  He  appears  to 
be  totally  destitute  of  literary  judgment  at  least ;  for  I  have  heard  him  declaim  a 


144  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

Ohio  in  a  short  time.  I  found  likewise  at  Ipswich  a  number  of  the 
young  ladies  from  Newbury- Port,  who  to  be  sure  were  gallanted  by 
their  fathers.  It  was  near  four  o'clock  when  I  left  Ipswich  ;  and  Pick- 
man  at  the  same  time  returned  to  Salem.  It  was  so  late  when  we  got 
there  that  I  could  not  think  of  reaching  Boston  this  night,  and  I  there- 
fore accepted  of  Pickman's  invitation  to  lodge  in  town.  He  went  with 
me  to  Mr.  Derby's ;  ^  but  the  young  ladies  were  not  at  home,  so  that  I 
had  not  the  pleasure  of  being  introduced  to  his  Dulcinea.  Learned, 
who  is  upon  the  study  of  physic  in  this  town,  pass'd  the  evening 
with  us. 

20th.  I  was  up  early  in  the  morning,  and  mounted  my  horse  at 
about  seven.  It  was  ten  when  I  got  into  Boston.  I  went  to  Mr. 
Smith's,  and  found  my  father  was  gone  to  Braintree,  but  my  mamma 
was  at  the  Governor's.  I  immediately  went  there  and  enjoy'd  all  the 
satisfaction  that  can  arise  from  the  meeting  so  near  and  dear  a  friend 
after  a  long  absence.^  We  dined  at  Deacon  Storer's.  Old  Mrs.  Edwards 
was  there  (Vol.  2.  p.  27 f  and  Dr.  Watorhouse,  &c.     Between  five  and 

piece  in  very  plain  English,  which  I  was  convinced  he  did  not  understand.  At 
recitations  he  was  never  distinguished  for  talking  the  meaning  of  an  author,  and 
in  short  all  his  puhlic  exercises  have  been  inferior  to  the  common  run.  Yet  he  is 
possess'd  of  extreme  sensibihty,  and  his  temper  is  very  irascible.  His  person  is 
handsome,  but  there  is  an  unmeaning  stare  in  his  ej'e,  wiiich  is  too  expressive  of 
tlie  vacancy  in  his  mind.  It  would  require  a  very  metapliysical  genius  to  prove 
this  to  be  a  good  or  a  bad  character;  but  it  is  not  certainly  one  which  any  per- 
son woukl  wish  to  possess."  JNIanuscript  diary  of  J.  Q.  Adams,  May  3,  1787. 
Ephraim  Kendall,  according  to  J.  L.  Sibley's  manuscript  memorandum,  was  bora 
in  Ipswich  November  28,  17(55;   died  there  August  15,  1846. 

1  Elias  H.  Derby,  one  of  the  richest  merchants  in  Salem,  a  pioneer  in  the 
estahlisliment  of  tiie  East  India  trade  (see  supra,  p.  102). 

2  With  the  exception  of  one  brief  period  of  a  little  over  three  months,  August 
2  to  November  13,  1779,  —  during  which,  at  Braintree  and  in  Boston,  he  was 
engrossed  with  tlie  work  of  the  Convention  of  that  year,  and  his  draft  of  the  Con- 
stitution of  Massachusetts, — Jolm  Adams  had  at  this  time  been  ten  years  absent 
from  home.  First  sailing  from  Boston  bay  February  13,  1778,  he  got  back 
there  June  17,  1788.  Mrs.  Adams  had  joined  him  in  London  in  July,  1784. 
In  May,  1785,  J.  Q.  Adams  had  left  his  family  at  Auteuil,  France,  returning  to 
America.  Tiieir  present  separation  had,  tlierefore,  been  a  little  over  three  years. 
The  impression  made  on  John  Adams  by  the  changes  which  had  taken  place 
in  Massachusetts  during  this  long  absence  is  interesting;  and,  in  view  of  tlie 
recent  unrest  and  uprisings,  hardly  what  would  have  been  expected.  He  wrote : 
"  The  increase  of  population  is  wonderful.  The  plenty  of  provisions  of  all  kinds 
amazing,  and  cheap  in  proportion  to  their  abundance  and  the  scarcity  of  money, 
which  is  certainly  very  great.  The  agriculture,  fisheries,  manufactures  and  com- 
merce of  the  country  are  very  well,  much  better  than  I  expected  to  find  them. 
I  cannot  say  so  much  of  our  politics.  ...  I  regret  the  loss  of  the  book-shops, 
and  tlie  society  of  the  few  men  of  letters  that  I  knew  in  London ;  in  all  other 
respects  I  am  much  better  accommodated  here."  To  Thomas  Brand-HoUis, 
December  3,  1788.     Works,  vol.  ix.  pp.  557,  558. 

2  J.  Q.  Adams  first  met  Mrs.  Edwards  at  Mrs.  Quincy's  in  Braintree.    He  then 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  145 

BIX  we  sat  out  for  Braintree.  As  I  was  already  somewhat  fatigued,  my 
cousiu  Crauch  gave  me  up  his  seat  in  the  chaise  with  my  mamma, 
aud  took  my  horse.  At  about  eight  we  got  to  Mr.  Cranch's,  and  there 
my  satisfaction  and  pleasures  were  again  renew'd  at  finding  my  father 
in  good  health,  and  here  I  must  stop  for  the  present. 

21st.  The  weather  was  very  warm.  I  went  down  to  my  uncle 
Quincy's,-^  and  from  thence  on  the  shore.  One  lighter  arrived  in  the 
afternoon  with  part  of  the  goods  and  furniture,  and  the  other  is  ex- 
pected to-morrow. 

22d.  Parson  Wibird  preached  in  his  usual  dull,  inanimated  strain, 
of  late  indeed  he  has  lost,  it  is  said,  his  only  claim  to  merit  by  declining 
wholly  to  change  with  the  neighbouring  ministers.  After  meeting  this 
evening,  I  went  with  W.  Cranch  down  to  Mrs.  Quincy's  and  drank 
tea.  Mrs.  Quincy  of  Boston  was  there,  and  very  agreeable.^  I  had 
never  been  in  company  with  her  before. 

23d.  A  second  lighter  carae  up  this  day  with  things  from  the  ship. 
"We  were  very  busy  in  unpacking  during  the  whole  day.  A  bed  was 
set  up  in  the  house,  in  which  I  lodg'd,  but  we  have  done  sufficient  to 
make  a  great  deal  of  work  before  we  get  at  rights ;  there  is  yet  a  great 
deal  to  be  done  to  the  house.  When  I  came  from  Newbury-Port,  I 
intended  to  have  studied  as  much  here  as  I  should  have  done  there, 
but  I  begin  to  suspect  that  I  shall  find  it  utterly  impossible.  At  least, 
I  have  given  up  all  thoughts  of  doing  any  thing  in  that  way  for  the 
present. 

24th.  This  day  we  got  so  far  in  order  as  to  make  a  home  of  the 
house.  I  dined  at  my  uncle  Cranch's.  The  remainder  of  the  packages 
are  expected  to-morrow,  but  those  that  are  already  here  are  not  all 
unpack'd.     Much  damage  was  done  on  the  voyage. 

25th.  This  afternoon  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Shaw  came  in  from  Haverhill ; 
they  found  us  still  in  great  disorder.  We  began  this  day  to  unpack  the 
books ;  ^  though  we  have  at  present  no  room  to  stow  them  in  properly. 
They  were  moist  and  somewhat  mouldy,  but  not  injured  at  all. 

26th.  We  all  dined  at  Mr.  Cranch's.  Charles  came  from  Cam- 
bridge to  spend  a  day  or  two  with  us.  I  continued  this  whole  day 
quite  industriously  to  unpack  and  place  the  books,  yet  did  not  get  half 

spoke  of  her  as  "  an  antiquated  coquet,"  adding  that  "  if  her  face  did  not  give 
the  lye  to  her  behaviour  I  should  suppose  her  now  to  be  seventeen  rather  tlian 
seventy." 

^  Norton  Quincy.  The  house  at  Mount  Wollaston,  built  by  Colonel  John 
Quincy,  from  which  J.  Q.  Adams  had  embarked  for  Europe  with  his  father, 
February  13,  1778. 

2  Mrs.  Josiah  Quincy,  Jr.,  daughter  of  William  Phillips.  See  Quincy's 
Josiah  Quincy,  pp.  20-23,  35,  36. 

^  The  collection  subsequently  given  by  John  Adams  to  the  town  of  Quincy, 
in  connection  with  the  Adams  Academy.  Now  (1902)  in  the  Boston  Public 
Library  building. 

19 


146  DIAKY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

through  with  the  business.  There  are  a  great  many  books  which  I 
wish  very  much  to  peruse ;  but  I  have  not  the  time  at  present,  and 
must  certainly  for  some  years  be  separated  from  them. 

27th.  The  day  was  spent  Hke  the  preceding  ones.  There  was  some 
company  here  in  the  afternoon.  I  give  as  much  of  the  little  leisure 
time  I  have  as  I  can  conveniently  to  some  lectures  upon  History  and 
general  Policy,  a  new  publication  of  Dr.  Priestley,  whose  literary  powers 
may  be  truly  called  athletic.  There  are  several  other  late  perform- 
ances which  I  am  desirous  of  reading,  but  more  particularly  Mr.  Gib- 
bon's continuation  of  his  History  of  the  Decline  and  Fall  of  the  Roman 
Empire,  which  is  not,  however,  yet  completed.^ 

28th.  Mrs.  Welch  and  Betsey  Smith  came  from  Boston  this  morn- 
ing; we  all  went  to  Weymouth  and  dined  at  Doctor  Tufts's.  In 
the  afternoon  I  went  over  to  Mr.  Norton's  house,^  where  in  my  in- 
fancy I  have  spent  many  days  which  I  scarcely  remember  even  as  a 
distant  dream ;  but  before  this  day  I  had  not  been  in  the  house  these 
nine  years.  As  I  returned  from  Weymouth  I  was  overtaken  by  the 
rain,  and  stop'd  at  Mr.  Cranch's;  but  it  did  not  abate,  and  I  went 
home  in  the  midst  of  it. 

29lh.  I  attended  at  meeting  and  heard  Blr.  Wibird.  The  weather 
was  rather  dull  and  somewhat  sultry.  I  am  still  undetermined  whether 
to  return  this  week  to  Newbury-Port,  or  wait  till  after  Commencement. 
1  believe,  however,  I  shall  determine  upon  the  latter. 

30th.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Shaw  return'd  to  Haverhill  this  morning ;  and 
this  day  I  finished  unpacking  the  books,  which,  however,  must  continue 
for  some  time  in  great  disorder. 

Tuesday,  July  1st,  1788. 

It  was  nine  o'clock  before  I  could  get  away  from  Braintree  this 
morning,  and  I  arrived  at  the  Colleges  just  before  the  exhibition  began. 
A  Latin  Oration  was  spoken  by  Kirklaud,  and  was  very  well.  The 
Forensic  between  Palmer  ^  and  Waterman  was  tolerable,  but  I  forget  the 
subject.  The  English  Dialogue  between  Thacher  and  Gray  was  well 
spoken,  but  rather  stiff.  The  Greek  Dialogue  between  the  youngest 
Sullivan  and  my  brother  Tom  was  quite  short,  and  not  the  worse  for 
that.     The  English  Oration  was    by  Blake;    the  subject   agriculture. 

1  The  three  final  volumes  of  the  "Decline  and  Fall  "  were  published  on  Gibbon's 
fifty-first  birthday,  April  27,  1788. 

^  The  parsonage  at  Weymoutli,  formerly  the  home  of  his  grandfather.  Rev, 
WiUiam  Smith,  stood  immediately  below  tlie  present  East  Weymouth  station  of 
the  Old  Colony  division  of  the  New  York,  New  Haven,  and  Hartford  Railroad. 

3  Stephen  Palmer  (H.  C.  1789),  son  of  Rev.  Joseph  Palmer,  of  Norton,  Mass.; 
born  October  3,  17G6;  pastor  at  Needham,  1792-1821;  member  of  the  IMassa- 
chusetts  Historical  Society.  See  Proceedings,  vol.  i.  pp.  343-345.  Waterman 
died  in  1843  in  an  almshouse.    See  S.  Willard,  Memories,  vol.  i.  pp.  274,  275. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  147 

It  was  in  my  opinion  very  flimsy  and  superficial ;  but  as  we  came  but 
I  heard  a  young  fellow,  who  had  something  of  the  appearance  of  a 
would-be  fop,  exclaim  "  upon  my  soul  Blake  has  given  us  one  of  the 
genteelest  Orations  I  ever  heard."  In  former  days,  gentility  with 
respect  to  composition  consisted  in  bad  spelling  and  bad  grammar ; 
under  which  sense  the  description  would  not  be  wholly  unjust.  But 
what  the  expression  means  at  this  day  I  know  not ;  and  therefore  its 
singularity  was  what  I  chiefly  remarked.  I  was  agreeably  surprised 
to  meet  my  friend  Thompson  here  ;  but  saw  him  only  for  a  few  min- 
utes. I  went  down  and  dined  at  Judge  Dana's.  Mr.  Ben.  Ellery  ^  was 
there,  —  an  uncle  to  Mrs.  Dana,  a  rich  old  gentleman  and  somewhat 
singular  in  his  character.  In  the  afternoon  I  called  at  Mr.  Wiggles- 
worth's,  and  past  an  hour  agreeably  with  them.  I  went  to  Mr. 
Gaunett's ;  and  at  about  seven  in  the  evening  called  at  the  President's. 
He  was  not  at  home,  and  as  I  knew  not  what  to  do  with  myself  for  the 
remainder  of  the  evening  I  thought  I  might  as  well  go  home.  I  imme- 
diately went  to  Bradirfli's,^  mounted  my  horse,  and,  after  nine,  arrived 
safe  in  Braintree,  somewhat  fatigued  with  my  day's  work,  but  well 
satisfied  with  my  jaunt. 

2d.  The  weather  was  extremely  warm.  I  amused  myself  part  of 
the  day  in  reading,  and  part  in  shooting.  The  cherry  trees,  which 
are  quite  full  at  present,  are  so  inviting  to  the  birds  that  there  is  very 
good  sport  with  little  trouble. 

3d.  Between  nine  and  ten  I  went  with  my  father  from  Braintree  ; 
we  got  into  Cambridge  at  about  twelve.  After  stopping  a  few  minutes 
at  College,  we  first  went  down  and  called  upon  Judge  Trowbridge.^ 
He  is  very  old,  and  although  active  for  his  years,  yet  the  depradations 
of  time  are  conspicuous  upon  him.  We  dined  at  Mr.  Dana's.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Channing  from  Rhode  Island  were  there  ;  they  are  agreeable.* 
In  the  afternoon  we  first  called  at  the  President's,  and  drank  tea  there  ; 
from  thence  we  went  to  Mr.   Gerry's^  and   past  the  evening.     We 

1  Benjamin  Ellery,  brother  of  William  Ellery,  the  signer  of  the  Declaration  of 
Independence.     lie  married  the  widow  of  Colonel  Jolm  Vassal),  of  Cambridge. 

2  Bradish's  was  the  tavern  of  Ebcnezer  Bradish,  also  known  as  the  Blue  An- 
chor Tavern,  on  the  westerly  side  of  Brighton,  now  Boylston,  Street. 

3  Judge  Edmund  Trowbridge  (H.  C.  1728),  a  loyalist,  born  in  Newton  in  1709 ; 
Attorney-General  of  the  Province  in  1749;  member  of  the  Council  1764  and 
1765;  appointed  Associate  Justice  of  tlie  Superior  Court  in  1767;  resigned  in 
1775 ;  died  in  Cambridge  April  2,  1793.  He  lived  on  Mount  Auburn  Street, 
and  was  an  uncle  of  Francis  Dana,  to  whom  he  left  most  of  his  property.  W.  T. 
Davis,  Hist,  of  the  Judiciary  of  Massachusetts,  p.  97. 

*  Mr.  and  Mrs.  William  Channing,  parents  of  William  Ellery  Channing. 
Mrs.  Channing  was  Lucy  Ellery,  a  daughter  of  William  Ellery,  signer  of  the 
Declaration  of  Independence,  and  sister  of  Mrs.  Francis  Dana. 

5  Elbridge  Gerry  lived  in  what  was  afterwards  James  Russell  Lowell's  house, 
'*  Elmwood." 


148  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

fouud  Mrs.  "Warren  there,  and  were  in  the  midst  of  antifederalisru,  but 
quite  in  good  humour.  My  father  had  promised  to  take  a  lodging  at 
Judge  Dana's;  but  at  Mr.  Gerry's  invitation  I  past  the  night  at  his 
house. 

4Lh.  "Wo  left  Cambridge  by  nine  o'clock,  and  got  into  Boston  in  the 
midst  of  the  bustle.  "We  went  immediately  to  Brackett's  tavern;^ 
after  dressing  I  walk'd  out,  and  met  with  a  number  of  my  very  good 
friends.  At  about  eleven  we  went  to  the  old  South  meeting  house, 
and  heard  Mr.  Otis  ^  deliver  an  Oration,  the  composition  and  the  de- 
livery were  much  superior  even  to  my  expectations,  wliich  were  some- 
what sanguine.  It  was  greatly  superior,  in  my  opinion,  to  that  which 
he  delivered  when  he  took  his  second  degree ;  the  only  public  perform- 
ance that  I  had  heard  before  from  him.     I  saw  my  good  friend  Bridge^ 

1  Brackett's  tavern  (Cromwell's  Head)  was  on  the  northern  side  of  School 
Street,  not  far  from  the  corner  of  what  is  now  Washington  Street.  See  Drake's 
Old  Landmarks  of  Boston,  pp.  61,  62. 

2  Harrison  Gray  Otis  (H.  C.  1783)  delivered  the  annual  oration  at  the  request 
of  the  town  authorities. 

8  "  James  Bridge  of  Pownalborough  in  the  Province  of  Maine  was  twenty-one 
the  23d  of  last  September.  As  a  scholar  and  as  a  gentleman,  he  is  inferior  to  no 
one  in  the  class,  and  with  no  one  have  I  contracted  since  I  entered  the  university, 
so  great  a  degree  of  intimacy.  His  natural  abilities  are  very  good  and  they  liave 
been  greatly  improved  by  study.  His  passions  are  strong,  but  in  general  he  keeps 
thera  well  under  command.  His  genius  is  metaphysical,  rather  than  rhetorical ; 
in  reasoning  with  him  we  are  rather  convinced  by  the  force  of  his  argument, 
tlian  seduced  by  the  brilliancy  of  his  imagination.  He  is  possessed  of  much 
benevolence,  and  ambition  occupies  a  large  share  of  his  mind  ;  he  does  not  en- 
deavour to  conceal  this,  but  freely  owns  his  expectations ;  which  are  so  sanguine 
that  I  somewhat  fear  he  will  not  entirely  realize  them  all.  His  advantages,  how- 
ever, will  be  peculiar,  and  it  is,  I  think,  very  probable  that  he  will  one  day  be 
eminent  in  the  political  line.  Law  will  be  his  study  ;  and  I  have  long  hoped 
that  we  should  be  together  in  one  office,  but  many  difficulties  attend  the  scheme, 
and  I  fear  much  that  it  will  not  take  place.  My  friendship  for  this  gentleman 
and  three  or  four  more  of  my  classmates  saddens  very  much  the  anticipation  of 
commencement,  when  we  must  part,  perhaps  forever."  J.  Q.  Adams,  manuscript 
diary,  March  2,  1787.  Six  months  before,  on  September  23,  1780,  he  wrote: 
"  Tass'd  the  evening  at  Bridge's  chamber.  We  had  considerable  conversation,  as 
"we  frequently  have,  concerning  our  future  prospects.  He  is  ambitious,  and  in- 
tends to  engage  in  politics.  He  expects  more  happiness  from  it  than  he  will  ever 
realize,  I  believe  ;  but  he  is  form'd  for  a  political  life,  and  it  is  probabl[e  will]  show 
to  advantage  in  that  line." 

Bridge  was  one  of  J.  Q.  Adams's  favorite  classmates,  and  the  following  ex- 
tracts from  tiie  manuscript  diary  for  October  4  to  (i,  1786,  give  a  pleasing  and 
typical  view  of  their  daily  intercourse.  "  We  had  this  morning  a  forensic  given 
out,  to  be  read  next  week  on  the  question  whether  the  diversities  in  national 
characters  arise  chiefly  from  physical  causes.  I  am  to  support  the  affirmative, 
and  tliink  upon  the  whole  it  is  the  best  side  of  the  question.  ...  I  made  tea  for 
the  club.  Bridge  had  a  small  dispute  with  me  upr)n  the  nature  of  physical 
causes.  He  thought  the  effects  produced  by  sensual  appetites  could  not  be 
attributed  to  physical  causes.    I  was  of  opinion  that  they  must  be.    We  appealed 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  149 

for  a  few  minutes  only ;  he  told  me  he  expected  to  be  at  Newbury- 
Port  in  about  three  weeks  from  this.     I  likewise  met  with  Townsend 

to  Mr.  BuiT,  and  his  sentiments  confirm'd  mine.  ...  I  have  had  several  times 
Uttle  contests  with  Bridge  upon  the  subject  of  our  forensic.  He  is  to  support 
tlie  negative  side  of  the  question,  and  will  write  very  ingeniously.  He  is  the 
only  person  in  the  class  who  is  fond  of  discussing  questions  of  this  kind  in  con- 
versation. We  frequently  dispute,  and  it  always  increases  my  acquaintance  with 
the  subject.  The  objections  he  raises  are  commonly  weighty,  and  they  lead  me 
to  look  further  than  I  should  otherwise  do  into  the  point  in  debate,  and  our 
difference  of  opinion  is  attended  with  no  bad  effects,  as  all  acrimony  and  ill 
humour  is  excluded  from  our  conversations." 

On  his  return  from  college  to  his  home  in  Pownalborough,  Me.,  he  at  once 
plunged  into  politics.  "  Will  you  laugh,"  he  wrote,  May  4,  1788,  "  if  I  tell  you  I 
rode  sixty  miles  (the  bad  roads  made  it  a  hundred)  to  influence  our  late  election 
in  favour  of  Federalists  in  this  county  1  Will  you  laugh  if  I  tell  you  I  made  my 
father  qualify  me  to  vote  for  Gov.,  Lt.  Gov.,  &  Senator,  that  I  attended  our  town 
meeting  in  Pownalborough,  that  I  voted  myself  and  solicited  the  votes  of  others, 
that  I  pubhcly  harangued  the  audience,  &c.     This  was  not  the  half  of  my  zeal." 

At  the  same  time  he  was  studying  law  under  the  following  conditions,  out- 
lined in  a  letter  dated  Pownalboro',  yeptcmber  28, 1787  :  "  I  am  nominally  studying 
law  with  Mr.  Gardiner,  really  with  myself.  Soon  after  I  had  got  home  I  made 
him  a  visit,  and  laid  open  my  plan  to  him,  viz.,  of  putting  myself  under  his  direc- 
tion, and  of  studying  at  home  (we  live  two  miles  apart)  he  approved  it,  gave  me 
the  first  vol.  of  Blackstones  Commentaries  to  read,  and  said  he  would  act  the 
part  of  a  friend  and  neighbour  towards  me.  This  is  the  chief  that  has  passed 
between  us  on  the  subject  of  Law.  I  purchased  a  set  of  Blackstone  soon  after 
and  now  dont  even  use  his  books.  About  once  a  fortnight  I  spend  an  afternoon 
in  the  family,  in  the  common  mode  of  chit-chat,  cards,  back-gammon,  &c.  This 
is  t!ie  only  kind  of  instruction  I  am  l)ere  acquainted  with." 

Even  in  1787  this  form  of  preparation  for  the  legal  profession  did  not  secure 
satisfactory  results,  and  the  following  autumn  Bridge  came  to  Newburyport  as  a 
law  student  of  Theophilus  Parsons  and  roommate  of  J.  Q.  Adams.  He  began 
professional  life  at  Augusta,  Me.,  assuming  the  practice  of  General  William  Lith- 
gow,  who  then  retired.  He  became  agent  and  attorney  for  the  proprietors  of  the 
Kennebec  purchase,  having  a  lucrative  collecting  business.  He  did  not  become 
distinguished  in  politics.  He  was  a  representative  from  his  town  to  the  Legis- 
lature in  1799,  on  the  Governor's  Council  in  1818,  a  member  of  the  Constitutional 
Convention  of  1819,  and  a  commissioner  under  the  Act  of  Separation  of  1820. 
Owing  to  ill  health,  he  retired  from  the  bar  in  1812,  leaving  court  business  to  his 
jmiior  partner.  For  twenty  years  from  1814,  he  was  president  of  the  Augusta 
Bank;  he  died  in  1^34.  J.  Q.  Adams's  regard  for  this  early  friend  is  shown  by 
an  entry  in  the  diary  of  March  3,  1828,  in  a  discussion  with  Clay  as  to  the 
appointment  of  agents  to  defend  the  northeastern  boundary  of  the  United  States 
before  tiie  arbitrators  ap[)ointed  under  the  treaty  witii  England.  "I  told  Mr. 
Clay,  that  since  I  had  last  seen  him,  a  person  whom  I  believed  to  be  the  very 
best  man  in  the  State  for  the  office  had  been  recommended  to  me  by  Lieutenant- 
Governor  Winthrop,  of  Massachusetts,  and  by  the  late  Senator,  INIr.  James 
Lloyd,  and,  through  them,  by  Mr.  Reuel  Williams  [partner  of  James  Bridge]  of 
Maine.  I  meant  James  Bridge,  of  Augusta,  one  of  ray  oldest  and,  in  early  life, 
most  intimate  friends.  I  had  indeed  almost  lost  sight  of  him  for  near  forty 
years,  but  know  that  by  his  talents,  his  information,  and  the  course  of  his  life  he 
must  be  peculiarly  fitted  for  this  particular  service  ;  and  if  he  would  accept  the 
place,  there  was  not  an  individual  in  the  State  in  whose  able  and  faithful  per- 


150  DIARY  OF   JOHN   QUIXCY   ADAMS. 

as  I  was  going  out  of  the  church ;  and  we  went  together  to  the  Old 
Brick,  to  hear  General  PIuU's  ^  Oration  to  the  Cincinnati.  It  appeared 
to  me  rather  indilFerent ;  and  the  effect  upon  me  was  the  greater  from 
the  involuntary  comparison  with  that  which  I  had  just  heard.  How- 
ever, I  found  afterwards  there  were  many  persons  who  thought,  or 
pretended  to  think,  this  Oration  better,  both  in  matter  and  manner,  than 
the  other,  and  they  have  certainly  a  right  to  enjoy  their  opinions.  I 
dined  at  Deacon  JStorer's,  Parson  Wibird  was  there  and  some  other 
company.  In  the  afternoon  I  walk'd  up  on  the  common  to  see  the  mili- 
tary parade,  which  was  not  however  so  spirited  as  at  the  last  anni- 
versary;  but,  in  the  middle  of  the  afternoon,  the  news  arrived  that 
Virginia  had  acceded  to  the  Federal  Constitution,  and  immediately  the 
bells  were  set  to  ringing  and  the  guns  to  firing  again,  without  any 
mercy,  and  continued  all  the  remainder  of  the  afternoon.  In  the  even- 
ing a  number  of  young  fellows  paraded  round  the  streets,  with  caudles 
lighted  in  their  hands  and  a  drum  before  them,  not  much  to  their  own 
credit  or  to  the  honour  of  the  day ;  but  they  did  no  damage.  I  sjient 
part  of  the  evening  with  several  of  my  classmates ;  but  not  finding 
Bridge,  I  returned  early,  and  took  my  lodging  at  Brackett's. 

5th.  We  called  this  morning  at  Dr.  Welch's,  and  at  Mr.  Guild's ; 
but  left  town  at  about  ten  o'clock.  It  was  almost  one  when  we  got  to 
Braintree.  I  amused  myself  as  I  could  in  the  afternoon.  Mrs.  War- 
ren, with  her  sou  Harry  stop'd  here  this  night  on  their  way  to  Ply- 
mouth, to  which  place  General  Warren  has  removed  back,  after  living 
about  eight  years  at  Milton.  He  was  formerly  a  very  popular  man,  but 
of  late  years  he  has  thought  himself  neglected  by  the  people.  His 
mind  has  been  soured,  and  he  became  discontented  and  querulous.  He 
has  been  charged  with  using  his  influence  in  fiivour  of  tender  acts  and 
paper  money  ;  and  it  has  even  been  very  confidently  asserted  that  he 
secretly  favoured  the  insurrections  and  rebellion  of  the  winter  before 
last.  Whether  his  conduct  has  been  misrepresented  or  not,  is  a  point 
that  must  for  the  present  remain  undetermined.  But  he  has  certainly 
given  some  reason  for  suspicion  by  his  imprudence ;  and  when  in  a 
time  of  rebellion  a  man  openly  censures  the  conduct  in  general,  and 
almost  every  individual  act,  of  an  administration,  an  impartial  public 
will  always  judge  that  such  a  man  cannot  be  greatly  opposed  to  a 
party  who  are  attacking  the  same  measures.  Mrs.  Warren,  however, 
positively  declared  there  was  no  truth  in  those  allegations,  and  was  very 

formance  of  its  duties  I  should  place  more  implicit  confidence."  The  reasons 
wliy  the  nomination  was  not  made  are  given  in  the  Memoirs,  vol.  vii.  pp.  4tj0, 
483,  504,  529.  See  J.  W.  North,  Hist,  of  Augusta,  pp.  507-510,  with  portrait ;  also 
Maine  Hist.  Soc.  Coll.,  vol.  vi. 

1  General  William  Hull  (Yale  College,  1772)  had  an  honorable  record  in  the 
War  of  the  Revolution  and  in  Shays's  RebeUion;  but  is  chiefly  remembered  for 
the  unfortunate  surrender  of  Detroit  in  lbl2. 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  151 

confident  that  they  were  nothing  more  than  the  suggestions  of  the  Gen- 
eral's enemies,  whose  malignity  was  unaccountable,  but  whose  utmost 
spite  and  envy  could  not  disturb  his  happiness. 

For  all  the  distant  din  this  world  can  keep 
Rolls  o'er  his  grotto  and  but  soothes  his  sleep. 

6th.  The  weather  was  rather  disagreeable  in  the  morning,  and  Mrs. 
Warren  was  disposed  to  stay  and  pass  the  Sunday  with  us,  but  her  son 
was  so  anxious  to  get  home  that  she  finally  determined  to  go;  and 
they  went  away  at  about  nine.  I  attended  at  meeting,  and  heard  Par- 
son Wibird  dose  over  a  couple  of  sermons.  There  is  none  of  my  time 
that  I  regret  more  than  that  I  spend  in  hearing  him.  Were  it  not  for 
the  propriety  of  attending  public  worship  abstracted  from  all  consider- 
ations of  improvement  or  entertainment,  I  should  seldom  enter  within 
the  walls  of  that  house  while  he  continues  to  slumber  there. 

7th.  W.  Cranch  went  to  Boston  this  morning;  and  I  suppose  I 
shall  have  but  very  little  of  his  company  for  the  future,  as  he  is  to  be 
fixed  henceforth  for  some  time  to  his  ofiice.  I  amused  myself,  as  I 
have  done  for  several  days  past,  in  diverse  manners.  In  the  evening 
my  two  brothers  arrived  from  Cambridge,  having  obtained  leave  to  be 
absent  till  Friday,  when  the  scholars  will  all  be  dismiss'd. 

8th.  I  past  the  greater  part  of  the  day  in  gunning  with  my  brothers. 
The  weather  was,  as  it  has  been  for  several  days  past,  extremely  warm, 
and  the  fruits  of  the  earth  at  present  greatly  require  heat. 

9th.  Doctor  Leonard  came  here  in  the  morning.  This  gentleman 
came  as  a  passenger  with  Callahan.  He  underwent  a  violent  prosecu- 
tion, two  or  three  years  ago,  in  England  for  endeavouring  to  come  to 
America  with  some  models  of  manufacturing  machines ;  but,  after  being 
two  years  in  prison,  he  was  released  and  immediately  resumed  his 
original  intentions,  but  he  is  now  come  over  without  his  models ;  and 
he  rather  purposes  at  present  to  practice  in  his  original  profession  as  a 
physician  and  surgeon.  I  bath'd  in  the  sea  this  afternoon  ;  the  first 
time  I  have  done  so  this  summer;  indeed  it  is  rather  troublesome  here, 
on  account  of  insects  which  are  almost  innumerable. 

10th.  George  Warren  came  over  from  Milton  this  forenoon,  and  paid 
us  a  visit.  He  opened  an  otRce  in  Milton  last  winter,  and  has  done  as 
much  business  as  a  lawyer  generally  does  for  the  first  six  months  after 
he  begins  ;  but  the  prospects  are  far  from  being  encouraging.  When  I 
am  in  spirits  this  circumstance  strikes  me  only  as  an  incentive  to  more 
strenuous  exertions  ;  and  at  such  times  I  feel  such  a  resolution  to  over- 
come difficulties,  that  I  seem  already  in  a  fair  way  of  acquiring  repu- 
tation and  property.  My  father  says  that  when  he  was  a  student,  he 
heard  an  old  lawyer  tell  the  present  Judge  Sewall,  who  was  then  a 
student  likewise,  "  that  he  never  knew  a  lawyer  that  studied  who  did 


152  DIARY   OF  JOHN    QUINCY   ADAMS. 

not  grow  rich."  The  observation  made  an  impression,  and  his  own 
experience  has  confirmed  it. 

11th,  Tliis  day  completes  my  twenty-first  year.  It  emancipates  me 
from  the  yoke  of  paternal  authority,  which  I  never  felt,  and  places  me 
upon  ray  own  feet,  which  have  not  strength  enough  to  support  me.  I  con- 
tinue therefore  still  in  a  state  of  dependence.  One  third  of  the  period 
of  my  professional  studies  has  also  now  elapsed ;  and  two  years  more 
will  settle  me,  should  life  and  health  continue,  in  a  situation  where 
all  my  expectations  are  to  center.  I  feel  sometimes  a  strong  desire 
to  know  what  my  circumstances  will  be  in  seven  years  from  this  ;  but, 
I  must  acknowledge,  I  believe  my  happiness  would  rather  be  injured 
than  improved  by  the  information.^ 

12th.  In  the  diverse  amusements  of  reading,  of  shooting  birds,  and 
playing  upon  our  flutes,  we  past  the  present  day.  The  weather  is,  and 
has  for  a  fortnight  past  been,  such  that  fatiguing  occupations  cannot  be 
attended  to.  I  read  very  little,  and  that  of  a  light  kind  which  does 
not  greatly  engage  the  mind  ;  and  as  for  writing,  I  have  so  much  aban- 
doned it  that  I  have  not  written  three  pages  since  I  left  Newbury-Port. 
My  brothers  are  much  in  the  same  way. 

13th.  Weather  still  extremely  warm.  I  heard  Parson  "Wibird.  Mr. 
Q.  Thaxter  was  at  meeting  in  the  forenoon,  and  went  and  dined  with 
us.  In  the  afternoon  Madam  went  down  to  my  uncle  Quincy's,  and  I 
drank  tea  with  my  brothers  at  my  uncle  Adams's.  And  we  bath'd  at 
the  creek  ^  in  the  evening. 

14th.   Ben  Beale  ^  came  from  Taunton  this  morning ;  he  did  not  stop, 

1  On  the  date  named,  July  11,  1795,  J.  Q.  Adams  was  at  the  Hague,  represent- 
ing the  United  States  as  Resident  Minister.  The  entry  in  liis  diary  for  that  day 
is  but  three  lines  in  length,  and  mentions  merely  certain  calls  made  by  him  and 
the  programme  of  a  play  in  the  evening  which  he  pronounced,  as  a  performance, 
"  very  indifferent." 

2  Subsequently  named  Black's  Creek,  and  still  so  called.  Originally  Quincy's 
Creek. 

3  "  Benjamin  Beale  was  eighteen  the  6th  of  June  last.  His  father  was  from 
Braintree,  but  he  was  born  at  Liverpool  in  England  ;  he  entered  the  class  just 
before  they  commenced  Sophimoros.  His  disposition  is  amiable,  and  he  is  a  good 
scholar;  but  the  government  of  the  university  have  so  repeatedly  taken  notice 
of  him  at  exhibitions,  that  it  has  given  offence  to  many  of  the  young  gentlemen 
in  the  class,  and  they  affect  to  despise  his  abilities,  ami  to  deny  his  scholarship. 
His  talents  have  perhaps  been  rather  overrated  by  the  government,  but  I  fear 
they  are  still  more  underrated  in  the  class  ;  and  he  is  not  tlie  only  person  whose 
popularity  with  his  fellow  students  has  been  greatly  diminished  by  the  favours  of 
the  government.  Notwithstanding  all  the  reports  circulated  by  malice  and  envy, 
I  believe  him  very  deserving;  he  displays  no  vanitj-,  either  of  his  person,  which 
is  elegant,  or  of  his  genius,  which  has  been  flattered  by  distinction,  and  this,  I 
think,  is  a  sure  mark  of  good  sense.  Commerce  will  probably  be  his  profession ; 
and  from  his  general  character,  I  think  he  has  a  good  prospect  of  success.  May 
he  obtain  it ! "    Diary,  February  28,  1787.    Beale  died  in  Paris,  France,  in  1826, 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  153 

but  promised  to  come  and  see  us  ere  long.  When  I  came  in  from 
shooting,  which  still  continues  to  be  my  sport  and  my  occupation,  I 
found  a  Parson  West  ^  here,  an  old  gentleman,  who  was  three  years  in 
college  with  my  father,  and  at  that  time  very  intimate  with  him.  He 
is  very  sociable  and  very  sensible.  He  spent  the  day  here,  and  passes 
the  night  likewise.  He  keeps  late  hours  and  entertained  me  with  con- 
versation upon  language  till  between  twelve  and  one  o'clock.  Doctor 
Leonard  left  us  this  morning,  after  having  past  almost  a  week  with  us  ; 
he  appears  to  be  a  very  clever,  well  disposed  man,  but  possessing  no 
great  learning,  nor  even  much  information. 

15th.  Mr.  West  went  away  this  morning.  My  father  and  my 
brother  Charles  went  to  Boston,  whence  they  will  proceed  to-morrow 
to  Cambridge.  Beale  came  here  this  forenoon,  and  took  a  dinner  with 
us.  He  is  studying  law  with  Mr.  Barnes  at  Taunton,  but  spends 
much  of  his  time  at  home.  Mr.  Wibird  pass'd  the  afternoon  and  even- 
ing liere.  Dr.  Tufts  called  here  on  his  way  to  Boston,  and  my  brother 
Tom  went  to  Cambridge  this  afternoon  ;  for  my  own  part  I  preferred 
waiting  till  to-morrow  morning.  And  I  have  finally  determined  to 
return  here  after  Commencement,  at  least  for  a  day  or  two. 

16th.  Commencement  day,  I  mounted  my  horse  somewhat  early, 
and  arrived  at  Cambridge  by  nine  o'clock.  The  first  salutation  I  re- 
ceived as  I  was  going  into  the  College  yard  was,  "  Repent,  for  the 
kingdom  of  Heaven  is  at  hand,"  It  was  a  crazy  man  ;  but  without 
any  great  share  of  enthusiasm,  for  that  sentence  was  the  only  thing 
he  said,  and  he  repeated  it  every  two  or  three  minutes  during  the 
whole  forenoon ;  and  I  could  not  help  reflecting  with  pleasure  upon 
the  happy  liberality  of  sentiment,  which  prevails  so  much  that  a  man 
of  this  kind,  so  far  from  attracting  the  notice  of  the  executive  power, 
could  not  even  draw  a  crowd  around  him,  I  saw  my  classmates  in 
abundance  ;  there  were  more  than  thirty  of  us  here.  At  about  eleven 
we  went  to  the  meeting  house  ;  and  I  got  a  seat  in  the  foremost  gallery, 
next  to  Townseud,  The  procession  soon  came  on,  and  the  President 
after  making  a  prayer,  and  informing  the  audience  it  was  the  desire  of  the 
overseers  and  corporation  that  there  might  be  no  "clapping  applause," 
called  for  the  Salutatory  Oration,  which  -was  spoken  by  Phillips,  and 

1  Rev.  Samuel  West  (H.  C.  1754),  born  in  Barnstable  in  1730  ;  pastor  at  Dart- 
moiitli  (later  New  Bedford)  1760-1803;  lived  with  his  son  at  Tiverton  till  his 
death,  September  24,  1807  ;  a  member  of  the  Academy  of  Science  of  Boston  and 
of  Philadelphia  ;  was  called  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Lowell,  of  Boston,  "  one  of  tiie  giants 
of  his  time."  An  ardent  patriot  during  the  Revolution,  visiting  the  camp  to  en- 
courage the  soldiers,  he  was  a  member  of  tlie  Massachusetts  Convention  of  1788 ; 
and,  as  a  classmate  and  friend  of  Governor  Hancock,  was  chosen  to  visit  liim  and 
persuade  iiim  to  leave  his  sick-room  and  offer  his  famous  amendments  in  the 
Convention.  W.  J.  Potter,  The  First  Congregational  Society  in  New  Bedford, 
Mass.,  pp.  33-50;  Memories  of  S.  Willard,^  vol.  i.  pp.  212-214. 

20 


154  DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

was  pretty  well  delivered.  An  English  poem,  on  the  prospects  of 
America,  by  Dodge,  was  not  without  its  merit,  but  would  not  bear 
comparison  with  that  spoken  last  Commencement  by  Harris.  The 
order  in  which  the  other  ijerformances  came  on  was  as  follows  : 

A  forensic  disputation  upon  this  question,  —  "Whether  the  balance 
would  be  in  favour  of  our  existence  were  there  no  state  but  the  pres- 
ent?    By  Sanders  -^  and  Tappan. 

A  Greek  conference  upon  the  evil  effects  of  avarice  and  of  prodi- 
gality upon  society.     By  Gardner  and  Jackson. 

A  forensic  disputation.  Whether  a  republic  is  more  secure  of  the 
continuance  of  its  liberties,  when  the  officers  in  the  higher  branches  of 
government  are  elected  for  several  years  than  when  they  are  annually 
elected  ?     By  Gordon  and  Lincoln. 

An  English  conference,  —  Whether  a  large  emigration  from  Europe 
into  the  United  States  of  America  would  upon  tlie  whole  be  for  the 
real  advantage  of  the  States.     By  Adams  2d  and  Cabot. 

An  English  Oration.     By  Abbot. 

The  syllogistics  were  omitted,  and  these  performances  were  finished 
by  two  o'clock.  I  went  and  dined  at  Judge  Dana's,  and  at  about  four 
returned  to  the  meeting  house.  An  English  Oration  was  delivered 
by  Mr.  Ware  upon  the  effects  of  religion  upon  civil  government  and 
society.  It  was  an  excellent  oration,  and,  notwithstanding  the  Presi- 
dent's caution  in  the  morning,  there  was  something  like  a  clap,  which 
proceeded  chiefly,  I  imagine,  from  the  students  that  were  present.  The 
President  with  his  peculiar  elegance  of  expression  said,  "•  I  am  sorry 
that  the  desires  of  the  Corporation  and  Overseers  should  be  infringed 
upon,"  and  proceeded  to  give  the  degrees.  There  was  a  new  cere- 
mony, of  giving  a  degree  of  bachelor  in  physic ;  two  young  fellows  by 
the  name  of  Hall  and  Fleet  ^  received  these  diplomas,  and  even  the 
President  in  giving  them  seemed  to  have  the  awkwardness  of  novelty 
about  him.  A  valedictory  Oration  was  spoken  by  Mr.  Allyne,^  and 
the  President  made  a  concluding  prayer,  which  concluded  the  public 
ceremonies  of  the  day.     I  forgot  to  observe  that,  after  the  forenoon 

1  Daniel  Clarke  Sanders  was  President  of  the  University  of  Vermont  1800-1814 ; 
pastor  at  Medfield,  Mass.,  1815-1829. 

2  Neither  of  these  first  medical  graduates  from  Harvard  seems  to  have  attained 
a  position  of  distinction  in  the  profession.  Jolm  Fleet  (H.  C.  1785),  belonging 
to  the  family  of  Fleet's  Almanack  and  the  Mother  Goose  Melodies,  was  a  physi- 
cian in  Boston  ;  died  January  4,  1813.  George  Holmes  Hall  (II.  C.  1781),  born 
January  8,  17G3,  in  Medford,  was  physician,  apothecary  and  store-keeper  in 
Brattleboro',  Vt.;  died  there  April  14,  1807.  Vermont  Hist.  Gazetteer,  vol.  v. 
p.  61. 

3  Rev.  John  Allyn  (H.  C.  1785),  born  at  Barnstable  IMarch  21,  17G7:  ordained 
at  Duxbury  December  3,  1788;  a  colleague  settled  June  7,  1826;  died  July  10, 
1833;  a  member  of  the  Massachusetts  Historical  Society.  3  Mass.  Hist.  Coll., 
vol.  V.  pp.  245-252;  Justm  Winsor,  Hist,  of  Duxbury,  pp.  88,  207-209. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  155 

performances  were  finished,  tine  Governor  ^  got  up,  addressed  the  Presi- 
dent, wlio  was  likewise  standing,  by  the  title  of  "  reverend  and  learned 
Sir,"  and  made  a  long  speech  in  which  he  blest  his  stars  for  being 
born  in  a  land  of  Liberty  and  Science,  &c.  Some  people  thought  his 
performance  was  equal  to  any  iu  the  course  of  the  day  ;  but  opinions 
on  that  subject  were  divided  It  was  prepared  before  hand,  though  it 
bore  ample  testimony  of  the  genius  and  learning  which  the  young 
gentlemen  had  display'd. 

"  Wherein  all  prophets  far  out  went  he. 

Though  former  days  produced  a  plenty, 

For  any  man,  with  half  an  eye, 

"What  stands  before  him  can  espy, 

But  optics  sharp  it  needs,  I  ween, 

To  see  what  is  not  to  be  seen."^ 

To  return.  After  we  came  out  of  the  meeting  house  I  stroll'd  about 
for  some  time,  greeting  one  friend  and  another  as  I  met  them.  I  went 
with  Forbes  and  Little,  and  drank  tea  at  Dr.  Wiggles  worth's.  I  re- 
turned to  College,  and  spent  the  evening  in  diverse  places.  I  finally 
found  young  Phillips,  and  took  a  supper  with  him  at  his  chamber, 
where  I  found  also  a  number  of  his  classmates.  I  retired  at  about 
eleven  o'clock,  having  enjoy'd  the  day  very  highly ;  but  my  spirits 
had  been  so  much  raised  that  I  could  get  but  little  sleep. 
17th.    The  young  gentlemen  who  graduated  yesterday  were 

Benjamin  Abbot  Charles  Jackson 

Solomon  Adams  Abner  Lincoln 

Thomas  Adams  Henry  Phelps 

Thomas  Bancroft  John  Phillips 

Oliver  Barron  James  Prescott 

Stephen  Baxter  Daniel  Clarke  Sanders 

Joseph  Brigham  William  Sawyer 

Joseph  Cabot  Amos  Tappan 

George  Caryl  John  Dexter  Treadwell 

Edward  Clarke  Charles  Turner 

Oliver  Dodge  Nathan  Underwood 

James  Gardner  Samuel  West 

Adam  Gordon  Robert  W^ier. 

William  Hill 

1  The  class  of  1787  had  petitioned  the  corporation  for  a  private  Commence- 
ment, but  their  request  was  refused  on  the  ground  that  it  might  serve  as  a  pre- 
cedent, and  remove  a  stimulus  to  study.  "Another  reason,  whicli  Mr.  Willard 
said,  had  weight,  although  the  gentlemen  did  not  choose  to  avow  it  publicly,  was 
their  fear  of  offending  the  future  Governor  by  depriving  him  of  that  opportunity 
to  show  himself  in  splendor  and  magnific'ence."  Manuscript  diary,  April  11, 
1787.  See  Josiah  Quincy,  Hist,  of  Harvard  University,  vol.  ii.  pp.  182-207,  for  the 
very  strained  relations  between  Governor  Hancock  and  the  University. 

2  John  Trumbull,  McFingal,  Canto  i.  lines  63-67. 


156  DTAHY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

Jacob  Kimbal's  name  is  inserted  in  the  Theses  and  Catalogue,  but  he 
could  not  obtain  his  degree,  being  unable  to  pay  his  bills. 

This  morning  Mr.  Andrews  called  me  at  College  before  six  o'clock, 
and  we  soon  departed  together  towards  Braintrec,  where  we  arrived  at 
about  nine.  Mr.  Andrews  breakfasted  widi  us,  and  then  proceeded  to 
Ilingham.  My  spirits  were  so  much  exalted  yesterday  that  a  contrary 
effect  seems  this  day  to  take  place ;  the  bow  string  by  being  too  much 
distended  cannot  regain  its  usual  position  without  an  intermediate  re- 
laxation.    The  weather  was  sultry,  and  I  felt  much  fatigued. 

18th.  Upon  the  warmest  day  we  have  had  this  summer  I  was 
obliged  to  go  to  Boston,  upon  a  hard  trotting  horse  with  the  sun 
blazing  in  my  face  all  the  way.  I  do  not  know  thut  I  ever  suffered 
more  from  the  heat.  And  when  I  got  into  Boston  I  was  obliged  to 
bustle  about  almost  all  the  day.  I  had  to  call  three  times  at  Mr. 
Green's  store  before  I  could  get  the  payment  for  a  bill  of  exchange; 
which,  I  think,  is  a  very  irregular  manner  for  a  merchant  to  transact 
business.  I  got  the  money,  however,  in  the  afternoon.  I  dined  at  Mr. 
Dawes's,  he  was  not  at  home  himself;  but  Mrs.  Dawes  is  a  charming 
woman.  She  is  handsome,  but  there  is  an  amiable  sweetness  in  her 
countenance  and  manners  far  more  pleasing  than  the  most  perfect 
beauty  could  be  without  it.  "W.  Cranch  accompanied  me  in  all  my 
excursions.  "We  went  together  on  the  top  of  Beacon  hill,  and  greatly 
enjoyed  the  fine  prospect  and  the  refreshing  breeze.  At  aV)Out  seven 
o'clock  the  wind  got  round,  and  it  grew  quite  cool.  I  mounted,  and. 
rode  about  a  quarter  of  an  hour  iu  the  rain,  after  which  I  had  a  toler- 
able ride,  and  got  home  by  nine  o'clock.  I  had  taken  some  letters 
from  the  post-olfice,  which  were  from  my  sister  at  New  York. 

19th.  I  was  considerably  fatigued  by  my  jaunt  of  yesterday,  but 
made  out,  however,  to  read  something  iu  the  course  of  the  day ;  and  in 
the  slow  progress  which  I  have  made  since  I  came  to  Braintree  I  have 
at  length  got  through  the  volume  of  Dr.  Priestley  upon  History  and 
General  Policy,  which  I  take  to  be  an  excellent  work.  I  shall  take  as 
early  an  opportunity  as  possible  to  peruse  it  again. 

20th,  I  tarried  at  home  tliis  forenoon,  iu  order  to  write  a  letter  to 
my  sister.  Iu  the  afternoon  I  attended  at  meeting.  Went  up  to  Mr. 
Cranch's  after  meeting,  and  pass'd  an  hour  there.  I  took  my  leave  of 
them,  and  went  home  to  prepare  for  returning  to  Newbury- Port.  I 
know  not  that  I  ever  left  Braintree  with  so  much  regret.  I  have  past 
my  time  most  agreeably  here  these  five  weeks,  and  have  had  almost  all 
my  nearest  connexions  and  dearest  friends  about  me ;  but  otherwise, 
almost  all  the  time  has  been  lost  to  me,  and  I  must  return  to  those 
pursuits  which  are  to  be  the  support  of  my  future  life.  In  the  winter 
I  hope  to  spend  some  weeks  here,  and  then  I  shall  endeavour  to  join 
the  utile  dulci. 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  157 

21st.  This  morning  I  left  Braintree  in  company  with  my  brother 
Tom,  who  was  going  to  Haverhill ;  and  in  order  to  have  company,  so 
great  a  part  of  the  way,  I  determined  to  go  there  with  him.  We  stopp'd 
a  short  time  at  Cambridge,  and  1  went  to  Dr.  Hand's  to  take  a  letter 
from  Miss  Newhall,  as  I  had  promised  her  at  Commencement.  She 
was  gone  out,  but  had  left  the  letter.  We  dined  in  Wilmington,  and 
got  to  Haverhill  between  seven  and  eight  o'clock.  In  Woburn,  we 
saw  young  Bartlett,  who  had  thoughts  some  time  since  of  opening  an 
office  in  Braintree,  but  got  discouraged  there  and  finally  determined 
upon  Woburn,  where,  from  the  appearance  of  the  place,  I  should  doubt 
somewhat  of  his  succeeding  very  much ;  but  in  the  present  state  of  the 
profesi^^ion,  there  can  be  but  little  choice  of  place  for  a  young  man. 

22d.  I  went  to  see  Leonard  White  this  forenoon.  His  father  has 
been  unwell  for  some  days  past.  His  complaints  are  of  a  lethargic 
nature,  and  his  habit  is  such  that  such  disorders  must  probably  prove 
in  the  end  fatal  to  him.  He  now  sleeps  as  much  as  half  his  time, 
and  is  consequently  half  dead.  I  went  to  see  Mrs.  Bartlett,  and  saw 
Mr.  S.  Blodget  there ;  his  brother  Caleb,  and  young  Mr.  Breck  I  met 
with  yesterday  on  the  road  from  Boston,  at  the  tavern,  and  they  came 
forward  before  us.  I  pass'd  the  afternoon  at  Mr.  Thaxter's,  and  the 
evening  at  Mr.   Shaw's. 

23d.  I  had  almost  promised  Mr.  Thaxter  to  wait  till  the  afternoon ; 
but  as  there  was  an  appearance  of  a  probability  that  the  weather  wotdd 
be  disagreeable,  I  thought  it  would  be  safest  to  come  home  before  din- 
ner. My  brother  Tom  rode  with  me  about  four  miles  to  the  ferry. 
I  got  to  my  lodgings  between  twelve  and  one.  I  called  at  Dr.  Kilham's 
shop,  and  there  received  an  invitation  from  Mr.  Marquand  to  dine 
with  him.  There  was  some  company  there;  but  persons  with  whom  I 
had  no  acquaintance.  I  called  at  the  office  in  the  afternoon,  and  re- 
turned to  Mr.  Marquand's  to  tea.  In  the  evening,  I  went  and  deliv- 
ered to  Miss  Coats  the  letter  which  Miss  Newhall  left  for  her,  and 
came  home  quite  early. 

24th.  I  returned,  and  once  more  took  my  seat  in  the  office,  but 
did  little  this  forenoon.  Thompson  was  unwell,  and  did  not  attend. 
I  went  with  Putnam  to  club  at  Little's  ;  there  were  onlj'  three  of  us, 
Thompson  being  indisposed,  and  Stacey  out  of  town.  I  was  this  day 
inform'd  that  Pickman  has  lain  aside  all  thoughts  of  practising  law, 
and  has  already  opened  a  store  in  Boston.  The  determination  was 
rather  sudden ;  for  it  is  but  a  fortnight  since  he  was  sworn  into  Court 
at  Salem,  where  he  then  intended  to  open  an  office  immediately.  But 
he  never  was  fond  of  the  profession,  and  while  he  was  studying  with 
us  I  suspected  that  he  would  never  do  much  business  as  a  lawyer. 

25th.  Mr.  Andrews  came  to  town  last  night,  and  called  to  see  us 
at  the  office  this  forenoon.     They  have  engaged  him  to  preach  here  at 


158  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

Mr.  Carey's  for  six  Sundays,  and  will  probaLly  employ  him  longer 
Btill.  I  returned  this  day  to  Bacon's  Pleas  and  Pleadings,  which  I 
left  when  I  went  to  Braintree,  but  could  not  proceed  with  great  advan- 
tage, as  I  left  my  extract  book  in  a  small  trunk  which  was  to  come 
this  day  in  the  stage,  but  has  somehow  failed.  I  shall  make  some 
alterations  for  the  future  in  my  plan  of  study.  I  shall  not  confiue 
myself  so  closely  and  exclusively  to  the  law  ;  but  shall  devote  some 
part  of  the  day  to  studies  of  a  lighter  and  more  entertaining 
kind. 

26th.  I  went  to  pay  a  visit  to  Mrs.  Hooper,  but  disappointed  her 
by  having  no  news  from  her  son  Jo,  who  is  now  with  Mr.  Towusend. 
Took  a  long  walk  quite  alone.  We  have  a  new  boarder  at  my  lodg- 
ings;  a  Mr.  Romaiu,  a  Frenchman,  who  came  a  few  days  after  I  went 
from  here  last.  I  have  not  seen  him  yet,  as  he  went  on  a  fishing  party 
the  day  that  I  came  home,  and  is  not  yet  returned. 

27th.  Mr.  Andrews  preached  for  us  this  day,  and  was  somewhat 
longer  than  usual,  to  the  great  satisfaction  of  some  people  who  cannot 
eiiwily  \>Q  co7itented.  Mr.  Spring  and  Mr.  Murray  both  had  a  third  meet- 
ing in  the  evening ;  it  was  occasional  at  Mr.  Murray's,  but  Mr.  Spring 
is  determined  henceforth  to  make  a  practice  of  giving  a  lecture  oa 
Sundays,  besides  one  in  the  evening  on  Thursdays.  As  Mr.  Carey's 
parish  may  now  be  considered  as  vacant,  an  opportunity  presents  to 
attract  some  of  those  who  belong  there.  The  spiritual  welfare  of  the 
individuals  may  charitably  be  supposed  the  only  motive  which  Mr. 
Spring  will  acknowledge,  even  to  himself,  but  says  the  Duke  de  la 
Rochefoucault,  (who  was  as  fully  convinced  of  the  depravity  of  the 
human  heart  as  Mr.  Spring,  and  who  was  much  better  acquainted  with 
it),  "  L'esprit  est  toujours  la  dupe  du  cojur,"  —  the  head  is  ever  the 
dupe  of  the  heart.  And,  when  the  passions  assume  the  form  of  princi- 
ple, the  disguise  will  be  discovered  by  every  body  else  sooner  than  by 
the  man  who  is  directed  by  them.  Mr.  Spring's  interest  will  be  pro- 
moted should  he  make  converts,  for  his  parish  is  small  and  poor;  his 
vanity  will  be  flattered,  by  bringing  people  over  to  his  opinion  ;  and 
when  in  addition  to  this,  his  imagination  fondly  persuades  him  that 
his  cause  is  likewise  the  cause  of  God,  it  is  not  to  be  wondered  that 
he  can  reconcile  himself  to  contradictions,  and  that  his  practice  is 
openly  at  variance  with  his  theory,  which  condemns  the  use  of  means 
for  bringing  sinners  to  repentance. 

28th.  I  finished  reading  Bacon's  Pleas  and  Pleading ;  but  the  sub- 
ject is  so  knotty  that  I  must  at  some  future  period  read  this  over  once 
or  twice  more.  I  began  a  third  time  upon  Blackstone,  a  book  which 
a  lawyer  cannot  possibly  read  too  much.  In  the  evening,  I  walk'd 
into  Newbury  with  Stacey.  I  have  been  engaged  for  some  days  upon 
a  matter  which  takes  all  my  leisure  time :  it  is  in  writing  a  piece  for 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  159 

the  5th  of  September.  The  Society  at  Cambridge  ^  have  ordered  me 
to  speak  on  that  day  ;  and  I  shall  obey,  if  I  can  possibly  attend. 

29th.  After  spending  the  day  as  usual,  I  walk'd  with  Stacey  and 
Putnam.  After  going  some  way  into  Newbury  we  return'd  and  walk'd 
upon  a  sort  of  a  terrass  in  High  Street.  We  there  saw  a  number  of 
young  ladies  who  seemed  to  expect  to  be  accosted ;  and  some  of  whom 
finally  sat  down  on  the  grass,  perhaps  to  see  if  that  would  not  call 
our  attention  to  them  ;  but  we  were  really  inexorable,  notwithstanding 
Miss  Bradbury  was  there.  Indeed  it  has  been  observed  that  Putnam 
has  of  late  wholly  altered  his  conduct  towards  her  ;  and  there  have 
been  many  speculations  concerning  the  cause  or  the  causes  of  this 
difference.  Some  of  these  young  ladies  were  so  much  piqued  at  our 
apparent  neglect  of  them  that  they  revenged  themselves  with  proper 
spirit  by  laughing  loud  at  us  as  we  past  by  them  ;  and  what  pun- 
ishment could  possibly  be  more  severe  than  the  ridicule  of  a  young 
lady? 

30th.  This  afternoon  Mr.  Cutler  called  at  our  office,  and  per- 
suaded me  to  ride  with  him  up  to  Mr.  Brown's  farm,  where  we  found 
a  number  of  young  ladies.  The  afternoon  was  tolerably  insipid ;  we 
drank  tea  there,  and  afterwards  escorted  the  ladies.  I  rode  with  Miss 
Jones,  and  left  her  at  Captain  Fletcher's.  I  afterwards  returned 
there,  but  she  was  already  gone.  There  was  a  very  brilliant  northern 
light  in  the  evening.  Mr.  Cutler  is  one  of  the  most  complaisant  per- 
sons with  whom  I  am  acquainted.  The  ladies  employ  him  upon  almost 
every  occasion,  and  yet  behave  to  him  in  such  a  manner  as  does  not 
express  a  sense  of  obligations  received.  They  even  slight  and  disre- 
gard him  for  performing  those  services  by  which  he  renders  himself 
useful  to  them.  There  are  problems  in  the  female  character  which 
are  not  easily  solved. 

31st.  I  amuse  myself  in  reading  Junius's  letters,  which,  though 
the  factious  productions  of  a  partizan,  contain  many  excellent  observa- 
tions upon  men  and  manners.  We  met  this  evening  at  Putnam's. 
Thompson  left  us  to  go  to  lecture ! 

Friday,  August  1st,  1788. 

The  day  was  spent  in  the  usual  uninteresting  manner.  Indeed  it 
may  be  generally  observed  that  the  more  advantageously  the  day  is 
employed  for  myself,  the  less  I  have  to  say  at  the  close  of  it.  I 
walk'd  in  the  evening  with  Stacey,  till  after  nine  o'clock. 

2d.  Mr.  Farnham  proposed  to  me  this  morning  to  join  a  party 
which  was  formed  to  go  in  the  afternoon  to  the  grove  ;  a  romantic 
spot  where  the  young  people  are  fond  of  visiting.     I  declined,  how- 

1  The  Phi  Beta  Kappa  Society. 


IGO  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

ever,  and  they  finally  gave  up  the  scheme,  as  they  were  informed  the 
proprietor  of  the  land  hud  some  objections.  I  have  been  this  week 
tolerably  industrious. 

3d.  I  heard  Mr.  Andrews  preach.  About  as  long  as  he  was  last 
Sunday.  I  think  he  is  gaining  ground  in  the  parish,  and  am  in 
hopes  that  he  may  be  finally  settled  without  much  opposition ;  which 
would  greatly  disappoint  some  flaming  zealots,  who,  like  all  zealots, 
justify  unworthy  means  by  the  sanctity  of  the  end.  I  walk'd  in  the 
beginning  of  the  evening  with  Stacey,  and  afterwards  called  at  Mrs. 
Hooper's.  Betsey  gratified  her  temper  by  the  most  unlimited  severity 
upon  a  number  of  young  ladies  who  usually  associate  together.  There 
appears  by  her  conversation  to  be  some  peculiar  enmity  against  them. 
Her  mother  always  reproves  her,  and  always  follows  her  example. 
There  appears  a  singular  pleasure  in  observing  the  trifling  and  silly 
conduct  of  that  circle ;  and  thus,  throughout  society,  the  follies  of  one 
always  contribute  to  the  gratification  of  many  others. 

4th.  Blackstone  still  furnishes  me  with  employment  for  my  fore- 
noon hours ;  and  I  this  day  took  up  the  fourth  volume  of  Hume's 
History,  which  I  was  reading  when  I  last  went  from  here.  This 
author's  manifest  partiality  in  favour  of  the  Stuarts,  his  unceasing 
labours  to  palliate  their  faults,  and  his  blindness  to  their  crimes,  must 
be  overlook'd  or  forgiven  in  favor  of  the  great  entertainment  which  he 
affords.  I  pass'd  the  evening  with  Thompson,  at  Mr.  Carter's.  The 
conversation  was  not  uncommonly  interesting,  though  the  old  gentle- 
man is  always  agreeable  to  me.  Betsey  Smith  of  Boston  was  there, 
and  has  been  with  them  for  several  weeks. 

5th.  This  forenoon  a  Doctor  Young  came  to  our  office,  for  a  writ 
against  a  number  of  insurgents.  It  seems  he  was  a  volunteer  in  the 
service  of  government,  the  winter  before  last,  and,  being  upon  a  party 
against  several  of  them,  received  a  ball  in  his  knee,  which  has  made 
him  a  cripple  for  life.  He  brought  an  action  against  them  some  time 
since  at  Worcester.  But  his  jury  were  one  half  of  them  insurgents, 
who  were  for  giving  him  no  damages,  and  the  other  half  thought  he 
should  have  a  thousand  or  fifteen  hundred  pounds.  They  could  not 
agree,  upon  which  he  discontinued  his  action,  and  is  now  determined 
to  bring  one  forward  in  this  county,  where  he  hopes  to  find  a  more 
impartial  jury.  The  cause  will,  I  doubt  not,  be  very  interesting,  and 
Mr.  Parsons  will  exert  himself.     I  walk'd  in  the  evening  with  Stacey. 

6th.  Putnam  went  last  week  to  Danvers,  and  return'd  this  forenoon. 
He  brought  me  a  letter  which  came  from  Townsend  enclosing  one 
for  Mrs.  Hooper.  Amory  it  seems  has  suddenly  determined  to  open 
an  office  in  Salem,  and  has  already  put  his  determination  into  execu- 
tion. He  had  concluded  to  take  a  trip,  either  to  Georgia  or  Carolina ; 
but  upon  being  informed  that  Pickman  had  altered  his  scheme,  he 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADxYMS.  161 

thought  it  would  be  best  to  try  his  fortune  first  in  this  part  of  the 
country.  I  went  in  the  evening  with  Thompson  up  to  Mrs.  Atkins's. 
I  told  them  that  Townsend  was  coming  here  next  week.  Becca  said 
she  hoped  he  would  make  .himself  welcome  by  bringing  Jo  Hooper  with 
him.  It  was  conjectured  while  Townsend  lived  in  this  town  that  he 
had  a  partiality  for  this  lady.  He  frequented  the  house  very  much  ; 
and  there  appears  now  a  coolness  in  them  bordering  upon  the  resent- 
ment of  disajjpointment.  Mrs.  Atkins  said  that  a  man  must  generally 
be  a  good  judge  of  his  own  compositions,  and  ask'd  me  if  I  was  of  that 
opinion.  I  was  not,  and  endeavoured  to  avoid  answering  directly ;  but 
she  would  not  suffer  it ;  and  I  was  finally  obliged  to  agree  to  the  truth 
of  her  observation  ;  protestando  to  myself  that  it  was  only  from  com- 
plaisance to  a  lady  that  I  agreed,  which  will  always  excuse  a  little 
self-denying,  as  Hudibras  calls  it. 

7th.  Thompson  did  not  attend  this  day  at  the  oflice.  Phillips 
called  to  see  us  this  afternoon.  He  has  been  to  Portsmouth,  and  is 
now  upon  his  return  to  Boston.  He  expects  to  read  law  in  Mr. 
Dawes's  office.  I  walk'd  into  Newbury  this  evening  with  Stacey. 
The  evenings  grow  long  to  my  great  regret.  At  present  I  can  employ 
the  evening  from  dusk  till  nine  o'clock  in  walking  ;  and  as  I  am  not 
over  fond  of  visiting,  this  is  the  most  agreeable,  as  well  as  to  me  the 
most  useful,  method  of  spending  my  time.  I  am  not  upon  familiar 
terms  in  one  house  in  town  ;  and  upon  the  cold  formality  of  cere- 
mony, with  which  all  my  visits  must  be  accompanied,  I  confess  I  wish 
not  to  be  extensively  acquainted. 

8th.  We  met  this  evening  at  my  lodgings,  as  we  have  changed  the 
evening  in  order  to  accommodate  Thompson,  who  wishes  to  attend  Mr. 
Spring's  lectures.  This  young  fellow,  who  is  possessed  of  most  violent 
passions,  which  he  with  great  difficulty  can  command,  and  of  unbounded 
ambition,  which  he  conceals  perhaps  even  to  himself,  has  been  seduced 
into  that  bigoted,  illiberal  system  of  religion  which,  by  professing  vainly 
to  follow  purely  the  dictates  of  the  Bible,  in  reality  contradicts  the 
whole  doctrine  of  the  New  Testament,  and  destroys  all  the  boundaries 
between  good  and  evil,  between  right  and  wrong.  But,  like  all  the  fol- 
lowers of  that  sect,  his  practice  is  at  open  variance  with  his  theory. 
When  I  observe  into  what  inconsistent  absurdities  those  persons  run 
who  make  speculative,  metaphysical  religion  a  matter  of  importance, 
I  am  fully  determined  never  to  puzzle  myself  in  the  mazes  of  religious 
discussion,  to  content  myself  with  practising  the  dictates  of  God  and 
reason  so  far  as  I  can  judge  for  myself,  and  resign  myself  into  the 
arms  of  a  Being  whose  tender  mercies  are  over  all  his  works. 

9th.  Thompson  went  to  see  Miss  Roberts  at  Newtown.  I  cannot 
read  with  so  much  satisfaction  for  some  days  past,  as  I  usually  do,  as 
my  eyes  are  very  troublesome.     Walk'd  in  the  evening,  but  quite  alone. 

21 


162  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

I  finished  a  day  or  two  since  my  performance  for  the  5th  of  next 
month,  and  am  now  very  closely  engaged  in  a  matter  which  has  been 
accumuhiting  upon  me  these  two  months. 

10th.  Mr.  Kimball  supplied  the  place  of  Mr.  Andrews  this  day. 
I  observed  none  of  Capt"  Coombs's  family  were  at  meeting,  and  heard 
in  the  afternoon  that  his  daughter  Polly  had  left  this  world,  and  I 
trust  for  a  better,  this  morning,  after  an  illness  of  four  or  five  months. 
In  the  afternoon  I  went  to  Mr.  Spring's  meeting,  and  heard  a  Mr. 
Story  preach  there,  hammering  away  in  the  true  stile  upon  predestina- 
tion and  free-will.  None  but  an  atheist,  he  said,  could  doubt  of  the 
former ;  and  no  man  that  had  common  sense  of  the  latter.  lie  en- 
deavoured to  soften  his  system  as  much  as  possible ;  hoping  thereby, 
I  suppose,  that  he  might  be  employ'd  in  the  other  parish.  I  walk'd 
with  Stacey  and  Remain,  in  the  evening.  We  met  Amory,  who  was 
returning  from  Cape  Ann,  with  Miss  Fletcher.  After  he  had  carried 
her  home,  he  went  at  about  nine  in  the  evening  with  Stacey  to  Ipswich. 

11th.  Thompson  watch'd  last  evening;  in  consequence  of  which 
he  felt  not  much  disposed  to  study  closely  this  day,  and  was  but  little 
at  the  office.     Walk'd  in  the  evening  with  Putnam. 

12th.  I  called  in  the  afternoon,  for  about  half  an  hour,  at  the  office. 
Attended  Miss  Coombs's  funeral.  It  was  very  long.  I  walk'd  with 
Putnam.  As  we  were  returning  we  accosted  Miss  Jones  and  Miss 
Fletcher,  and  waited  on  them  home.  After  which  we  went  to  see 
Townsend,  who  came  in  town  this  forenoon  ;  we  past  an  hour  or  two 
there,  and  afterwards  walk'd  till  between  nine  and  ten.  Townsend's 
cough  still  hangs  upon  him;  and,  although  he  fancies  himself  essen- 
tially better,  his  situation  appears  to  me  more  dangerous  than  it  did 
four  months  ago.  His  spirits  however  are  as  brisk  and  lively  as  they 
ever  were ;  and  he  talks  as  much  as  ever,  which  I  believe  is  rather 
injurious  to  him.  My  time  flies  from  me  with  the  rapidity  of  a  whirl- 
wind, every  hour  is  precious,  and  every  moment  unemployed  becomes 
a  subject  of  regret.  This  afternoon  has  been  lost  to  me,  unless  the 
view  of  the  object  before  me  be  turned  to  some  profit ;  though  even 
that,  by  showing  more  forcibly  the  brevity  and  uncertainty  of  life, 
should  rather  condemn  me  for  neglecting  to  improve  every  minute 
to  the  best  purposes. 

13th.  Mrs.  Emery,  who  has  been  very  ill  these  four  or  five  weeks, 
died  last  night,  leaving  to  the  wide  world  two  orphan  children,^  who 
three  years  ago  had  the  fairest  prospects  of  sharing  a  fortune  of  ten 

1  Hannah  Tracy  Emery  {supra,  p.  45)  and  Robert  Emery.  He  entered  Har- 
vard College,  but  loss  of  property  compelled  him  to  leave ;  went  to  sea ;  was  a 
sliip-master  at  twenty  ;  lived  in  Newburyport,  Salem  and  Boston  ;  died  Aujcnst  1, 
1841.  Rufus  Emery,  Genealogical  Records  of  Descendants  of  John  and  Anthony 
Emery,  p.  406. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS,  163 

thousand  pounds  sterling ;  but  who,  in  consequence  of  Mr.  Tracy's 
misfortunes,  are  now  almost  destitute  of  support.  I  walk'd  in  the 
evening  with  Stacey  and  Little.  Stacey  left  us.  We  met  Putnam 
walking  with  some  young  ladies.  I  joined  them,  and  pass'd  the 
remainder  of  the  evening  at  Mr.  Frazier's.  These  young  Misses  have 
assumed  an  importance  rather  above  their  years,  and  to  the  trifling 
conduct  and  conversation  of  childhood  unite  the  punctilious  formality 
of  riper  years.  I  receive  not  much  satisfaction  in  their  company,  and 
as  they  are  handsome  I  had  rather  look  at  them  for  five  minutes  than 
be  with  them  five  hours.  Putnam  is  not  so  difBcult  to  please  ;  he  can 
conform  to  their  manners,  and  enter  into  all  their  debates.  He  is  con- 
sequently a  favourite. 

14th.  This  was  a  day  of  humiliation  and  prayer  at  Mr.  Carey's, 
on  account  of  his  sickness,  and  to  implore  the  assistance  of  Providence 
in  choosing  a  colleague  to  supply  his  place.  Mr.  Webster  of  Salisbury 
preached  in  the  forenoon,  and  performed  very  well.  But  Dr.  Tucker 
in  the  afternoon  was  very  interesting  and  pathetic,  in  showing  how 
good  and  pleasant  a  thing  it  is  for  brethren  to  dwell  together  in  unity. 
1  attended  Mrs.  Emery's  funeral.  Mr.  Andrews  made  the  prayer, 
and  performed  even  better  than  was  expected.  I  passed  part  of  the 
evening  with  Townsend  ;  called  at  Mr.  Tufts's  to  see  Mrs.  Shaw,  but 
she  was  gone  out.  Mr.  Shaw  called  to  see  me  in  the  morning.  They 
came  in  town  last  night. 

loth.  I  called  in  at  Mr.  Tufts's  to  see  Mrs.  Shaw  this  morning.  I 
found  old  Mr.  Carter  there.  Geneological  as  usual.  I  dined  at  his 
house,  with  my  friends  from  Haverhill.  He  asked  me  to  return  to  tea  ; 
I  excused  myself.  He  said  that  tippling  business  would  be  going  on, 
every  afternoon  at  six  o'clock  ;  if  I  would  call  there  I  should  be  wel- 
come. I  returned  to  the  office,  but  felt  so  much  dissipated  that  I  could 
not  attend  with  much  application.  We  met  this  evening  at  Stacey's 
lodgings.  Townsend  went  away  just  before  sunset.  Lincoln,^  a  class- 
mate of  Thompson's,  pass'd  the  evening  with  us.  Though  a  young 
preacher,  he  is  not  so  rigid  in  his  principles  as  many  others  are.  In 
the  close  of  the  evening  we  took  a  walk. 

16th.  Dined  with  Townsend,  in  company  with  Mr.  Andrews  and 
Thompson.  After  dinner  we  took  a  ride  ;  went  down  to  Mr.  N. 
Tracy's,  but  he  was  not  at  home.  On  the  road  we  met  the  Governor, 
who  was  coming  into  town.  We  went  to  Mrs.  Atkins's.  She  was  in 
fine  spirits  and  consequently  very  good  company.  We  were,  however, 
obliged  to  come  away  early,  as  the  weather  was  rather  disagreeable. 
I  spent  the  evening  at  Mr.  Hooper's.  Mr.  Cutler  was  there.  We 
stroll'd  about,  an  hour  or  more,  after  we  came  away.     The  week  has 

1  Rev.  Henry  Lincoln  (H.  C.  1786),  born  November  3, 1765,  in  Hingham  ;  pastor 
at  Falmouth ;  died  May  28,  1857,  in  Nantucket.    Hist,  of  Hingham,  vol.  ii.  p.  467. 


164  DIARY  OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS. 

disappeared  in  a  very  singular  manner,  some  thing  or  other  has  taken 
me  from  my  studies  every  day  ;  and  at  the  close  of  the  week  I  regret 
the  time  lost  without  being  able  to  repair  it.  This  is  not  the  first 
time  that  I  have  experienced  this  effect  since  I  came  into  this  town, 
and  I  greatly  fear  it  will  not  be  the  last. 

17th.  Mr.  Andrews  preach'd  for  us  ;  this  forenoon  he  was  lengthy 
in  his  prayer  upon  the  late  misfortunes  in  the  several  families.  In  his 
sermon  he  likewise  touched  upon  the  subject,  in  recommending  to  us 
so  to  number  our  days  that  we  might  apply  our  hearts  unto  wisdom. 
I  past  the  evening  with  Townsend.  There  fell  a  considerable  quantity 
of  rain  in  the  course  of  the  last  night  and  of  this  day.  And  it  will  be 
very  useful,  as  the  fruits  of  the  ground  were  languishing  for  want  of 
moisture. 

18th.  This  morning  I  perceived  a  deal  of  stirring  in  the  streets, 
and  was  finally  informed  that  the  Governor  was  reviewing  the  troops 
of  this  town  ;  after  which  a  number  of  otTicers  and  other  gentlemen 
escorted  his  excellency  to  Haverhill,  where  he  intends  to  dine,  and 
then,  I  suppose,  he  means  to  show  himself  somewhere  else.  I  passed 
the  day  at  the  office,  and  the  evening  at  home  in  writing.  I  in- 
tended to  have  taken  my  usual  exercise  ;  but  upon  leaving  the  office 
I  found  it  was  raining,  and  it  continued  all  the  evening.  I  amused 
myself  tolerably  well  at  home.  I  have  indeed  had  for  some  time  past 
almost  as  much  business  to  do  at  my  lodgings  as  at  the  office  ;  but  I 
hope  to  be  gradually  relieved. 

19th.  Several  of  the  gentlemen  who  accompanied  the  Governor 
yesterday  to  Haverhill  went  on  to  Salem  with  him,  and  did  not  return 
till  this  evening.     I  was  with  Townsend. 

20th.  I  was  walking  with  Putnam  in  one  of  the  streets  in  town 
this  evening,  when  we  heard  a  strange  noise  in  a  house,  and  a  number 
of  people  standing  round  it.  We  went  up  to  the  window  and  heard 
a  man  exhorting,  as  they  call  it,  that  is  calling  upon  God  in  every  tone 
of  voice,  and  repeating  a  number  of  texts  of  scripture  incoherently 
huddled  together  so  as  to  make  an  unintelligible  jumble  of  nonsense, 
which  they  think  is  a  proper  method  of  seeking  the  Lord. 

21st.  Upon  Stacey's  invitation  I  went  with  him  and  Putnam,  and 
two  young  lads  by  the  name  of  Greenough,  to  Mr.  Greenleafs,  where 
we  had  something  like  a  concert  of  music.  The  house  was  soon  filled 
with  people ;  it  seemed  as  if  there  was  nobody  within  five  miles  that 
had  ever  heard  the  sound  of  a  violin  before.  Some  of  the  young 
ladies  thought  it  would  be  pretty  to  join  with  their  voices  in  the 
music ;  and  the  concert  thenceforth  became  both  vocal  and  instrumen- 
tal. I  was  fatigued  by  ten  o'clock  and  could  blow  no  more  ;  and  find- 
ing that  Stacey  and  Putnam  had  got  so  much  engaged  with  a  lovely 
songstress,  (or   one   that   might   be  lovely)  as  shew  no  prospect  of 


DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  165 

an  intention  to  quit,  I  came  off,  and  left  them  at  about  eleven 
o'clock. 

22d.  We  assembled  this  evening  at  Thompson's.  Mr.  Greenleaf 
called  in  and  past  an  hour  with  us.  He  was  apprehensive  that  we  were 
disgusted  with  the  crowd  last  evening ;  but  we  undeceived  him.  He 
talk'd  about  the  war  ;  for  he  was  an  officer  in  our  army. 

"  And  little  of  this  great  world  can  he  speak 
More  than  pertains  to  feats  of  broils  and  battle."  i 

Putnam  has  not  yet  got  over  his  trick  of  leaving  us  to  join  the  young 
ladies ;  but  this  evening  he  acknowledged  he  was  going  to  Mr. 
Frazier's.  We  likewise  walk'd  in  the  evening,  and  stroll'd  about  till 
ten  o'clock. 

23d.  Dined  at  Thompson's,  with  Mr.  Andrews  and  Townsend.  In 
the  afternoon  I  took  a  ride  with  Little  to  Haverhill.  I  endeavoured  to 
persuade  him  to  go  with  me  the  week  after  next  to  Cambridge ;  but 
my  labour  was  in  vain.  We  had  a  very  smart  thunder  shower  while 
we  were  on  the  road,  but  it  was  very  soon  over. 

Here  this  journal  very  abruptly  breaks  off.  I  had  long  doubted 
whether  the  utility  attending  the  method  which  I  have  pursued  were 
adequate  to  the  time  I  have  devoted  to  it.  But  an  indisposition  which 
for  two  months  has  prevented  me  from  writing,  has  finally  turned  the 
wavering  scale.  I  will  not  however  immediately  drop  all  memorials 
of  my  transactions  ;  but  the  remainder  of  this  volume  will  probably 
contain  a  space  of  time  as  long  as  that  recorded  already  in  more  than 
two  vols,  and  an  half. 

Wednesday,  September  3d.  I  went  over  the  river  with  Stacey  and 
Remain  upon  a  shooting  party.  We  had  tolerable  success.  It  was 
very  windy  :  and  with  a  heavy  boat  and  only  one  oar  we  had  some 
difficulty  to  get  across  the  river.  Bridge  arrived  this  day  in  town.  I 
proposed  to  him  to  go  with  me  to-morrow ;  and  he  has  partly  promised 
to  accept  my  proposal.  I  this  evening  informed  Mrs.  Leathers  of  my 
intention  to  change  my  lodgings. 

Thursday,  September  4th.  Left  Newbury-Port  this  morning  with 
Bridge.  We  dined  at  Putnam's  in  Danvers,  very  indifferent  enter- 
tainment. After  mistaking  our  road  and  going  to  Winisimet  ferry, 
we  finally  got  to  Cambridge  a  little  before  nine  o'clock.  Lodg'd  at 
Bradish's. 

Friday,  September  5th.  The  assembly  at  the  anniversary  of  $  B  K 
was  more  numerous  than  I  have  known  it.  There  were  near  forty 
members  present,  among  whom  were  two  from  Dartmouth  College. 
Lincoln,  who  was  to  have  been  one  of  the  speakers,  obtained  leave  to 
be  excused  on  account  of  ill  health.     The  Governor,  happening  to  be 

¥ 

1  Otbello,  Act  i.  Scene  3. 


166  DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

here  with  the  admiral,  and  some  other  officers  of  the  French  squadron, 
now  in  Boston  harbour,  honoured  us  with  his  presence,  as  did  all  the 
college  officers.  I  spoke  the  oration  which  is  hereto  annexed,  after 
which  we  retired  to  the  butler's  chamber :  the  French  Consul,^  who 
had  likewise  attended,  came  there  to  compliment  me,  &c.  After 
doing  what  business  was  necessary,  we  all  went  down  to  "Warland's 
and  dined  together ;  and  the  festive  board  crowned  the  enjoyments  of 
friendship. 

We  separated  early  in  the  afternoon,  and  I  went  and  paid  a  visit  at 
Dr.  Waterhouse's,  and  at  Mr,  Williams's.  I  went  to  Boston,  where 
Bridge  left  me  ;  and  I  took  up  my  brother  Tom.  We  met  my  class- 
mate Tom  Chandler,^  who  just  came  from  Halifax.  We  got  to  Braiutree 
between  seven  and  eight  o'clock,  where  I  found  Mr.  Parsons,  who 
pass'd  the  evening  with  us,  but  lodg'd  at  Mr.  Woodward's. 

Sunday,  September  7th,  1788.  The  Marquis  de  Sainneville,  com- 
mander of  the  French  Squadron  now  in  the  harbour,  and  the  Chevalier 
Maccarty  de  Martegues,  captain  of  the  Achille,  dined  here  to-day. 
Several  other  officers  were  detained  by  the  badness  of  the  weatlier. 

Wednesday,  September  10th.  The  Governor,  with  the  captains  of 
the  French  vessells,  the  French  Consul  and  some  other  gentlemen,  dined 
with   us. 

Friday,  September  12th.  I  left  Braintree  to  return  to  Newbury- 
Port.  Found  Bridge  in  Boston.  Dined  at  Mr.  Smith's.  We  left 
Boston  at  about  five  o'clock,  and  rode  ten  miles  to  Xewhall's  tavern, 
where  we  lodge. 

Saturday,  September    12th.     Breakfasted   in    Salem;    saw   Amory 

1  Le  Sieur  de  L'Etonibe  was  consul  for  Massachusetts  in  1788.  July  13, 1798, 
his  exequatur,  as  Consul  General  resident  in  Philadelphia,  was  revoked  by  Presi- 
dent Adams  for  infringements  of  the  neutrality  of  the  United  States.  See  John 
Adams,  Works,  vol.  viii.  p.  615;  vol.  ix.  pp.  6,  14,  170;  Wells,  Life  and  Public 
Services  of  Samuel  Adams,  vol.  iii.  p.  141. 

2  "  Thomas  Chandler  of  Worcester  was  nineteen  the  11th  of  last  January.  His 
father  was  formerly  one  of  the  most  opulent  individuals  in  N.  England  ;  but  in 
consequence  of  his  siding  with  the  British  in  the  late  war,  a  large  part  of  it  was 
confiscated ;  he  had  fifteen  or  sixteen  children,  so  that  Tom  has  not  the  prospect 
of  a  very  great  estate.     His  disposition  is  good ;  he  is  extremely  irascible,  but 

He  carries  anger,  as  the  flint  bears  fire ; 
a  trifle  will  throw  him  off"  his  guard,  but  a  moment's  recollection,  reforms  him. 
In  the  space  of  five  minutes  I  have  seen  him  calm,  raging,  violent  and  repenting; 
excepting  at  such  times  his  temper  is  easy  and  contented ;  his  happiness,  however, 
proceeds  chiefly  from  want  of  thought  and  reflection.  In  short,  he  appears  to  be 
influenced  so  entirely  by  his  passions  that  I  should  think  him  rather  an  instru- 
ment of  action  than  a  moral  agent."  Manuscript  diary  of  J.  Q.  Adams,  March 
14,1787.  Chandler  was  a  "merchant  "in  Worcester,  and  died  thei'e  in  May, 
1804.    W.  Lincoln,  Hist,  of  Worcester  (1862J,  p.  225. 


DIAKY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  167 

and  Learned.     Dined  at  Ipswich.     We  got  to  Newbury-Port  at  about 
five.     We  lodge  this  night  at  Mrs.  Hooper's. 

Sunday,  September  loth.  I  did  not  sleep  a  wink  the  whole  night. 
My  nerves  are  in  a  very  disagreeable  state  of  irritation.  I  attended 
meeting  all  day  at  Dr.  Tucker's,  with  Bridge.  I  called  in  the  evening 
at  Mr.  N.  Carter's  and  at  Mr.  Tufts's,  to  deliver  letters.  At  Mr. 
Tufts's  I  saw  Mr.  Shaw,  who  I  find  preached  for  Mr.  Andrews  this 
day.  I  retired  early,  and  went  to  bed,  but  could  get  no  sleep.  After 
laying  about  three  hours,  I  got  up  and  went  over  to  Dr.  Swett,  and 
requested  him  to  supply  me  with  an  opiate,  which  he  did ;  it  gradually 
composed  my  nerves,  and  gave  me  a  few  hours  of  sleep. 

Saturday,  September  20th.  I  have  had  three  or  four  sleepless  nights 
this  week,  and  for  the  little  rest  I  have  enjoyed  I  have  been  indebted 
to  soporific  draughts.  I  dined  tliis  day  with  Mr.  Parsons,  with  Bridge 
and  with  Foster,^  who  took  his  station  in  the  office  on  Thursday.  This 
afternoon  I  mounted  a  horse  and  went  to  Haverhill,  where  I  am  deter- 
mined to  spend  a  few  days,  and  see  if  I  cannot  recruit  my  health.  I 
found  H.  Lincoln  here. 

Wednesday,  September  24th.  Lincoln  went  yesterday  for  Hing- 
ham  ;  I  went  with  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Shaw  to  Andover.  There  was  a 
large  company  at  Mr.  Symmes's  ;  ^  and  after  dinner  we  had  a  lecture, 
the  sermon  was  intolerably  long.  Singing  remarkably  good.  We 
got  back  to  Haverhill  just  after  sunset.  My  brother  Charles  with 
Daniel  Russell  arrived  here  this  evening.  Charles  obtained  leave  to 
come  and  see  me.  Mr.  Thaxter  and  his  lady  pass'd  part  of  the  even- 
ing here. 

Saturday,  September  27th.  Another  tedious,  sleepless  night. 
Charles  and  Russell  returned  to  Cambridge.  I  dined  at  Mr.  White's, 
and  in  the  afternoon  got  a  little  sleep  which  greatly  refreshed  my 
drooping  spirits.     Mr.  French  was  here  in  the  evening. 

Tuesday,  September  30th.  The  weather  was  not  very  favourable ; 
but,  as  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas  was  to  sit  this  week  in  Kewbury- 
Port,  I  concluded  to  return  there.  When  I  got  home  I  found  Bridge 
unwell.  Nothing  done  at  Court  but  preparatory  business  this  day.  I 
retired  early  to  bed. 

Wednesday,  October  1st,  1788. 

"  O  gentle  sleep. 
Nature's  soft  Nurse,  how  have  I  frighted  thee 
That  thou  no  more  wilt  weigh  mine  eye  lids  down 
And  steep  my  senses  in  forgetfulness."  ^ 

^  Bossenger  Foster,  classmate  of  J.  Q.  Adams ;  see  supra,  p.  53. 

2  Rev.  William  Symmes,  D.D.  (H.  C.  1750),  pastor  at  North  Andover,  1758- 
1807.     Hurd,  Hist,  of  Essex  County,  pp.  1666,  1667.     See  stqyra,  p.  38. 

3  II.  Henry  IV.,  Act  iii.  Scene  1. 


168  DIARY  OF  JOHN  QUINCY  ADAMS. 

In  the  present  situation  of  my  health  I  cannot  possibly  attend  at  all 
to  study,  and  this  circumstance  with  some  others  has  determined  me  to 
spend  some  weeks,  pei'haps  some  months,  at  Braintree.  I  spoke  for  a 
place  in  the  stage  which  goes  to  Boston  to-morrow.  No  business  of 
consequence  done  at  Court  this  day.  Pass'd  part  of  the  evening  at 
Mr.  Jackson's. 

Thursday,  October  2d.  I  took  my  seat  in  the  stage,  in  company  with 
a  lady  who  came  from  Portsmouth,  and  Mr.  Vaughau,  the  brother  of 
the  gentlemen  with  whom  I  was  acquainted  in  London.^  It  was  seven 
in  the  evening  befoi-e  we  got  to  Boston.  I  went  to  Mr.  Smith's  ;  we 
pass'd  part  of  the  evening,  and  lodged  at  Dr.  Welch's.  Lodg'd  at 
Mr.  Smith's. 

Friday,  October  3d.  W,  Cranch  came  into  Boston  with  my  father, 
who,  coming  upon  business  which  will  detain  him  in  town  this  night, 
gave  me  an  opportunity  to  get  to  Braintree.  I  came  home  in  company 
with  my  cousin. 

Tuesday,  October  7th.  Mr.  Murray,^  the  preacher  who  came  from 
England  with  my  father,  came  this  day  to  pay  him  a  visit,  with  his 
lady  whom  he  has  lately  married.  He  appears  to  be  a  man  of  an 
easy  temper  and  an  ingenious  mind,  though  not  highly  improved  by 
learning.  His  wife  is  agreeable ;  though  she  appears  a  little  tinctured 
with  what  the  French  call  le  precieux. 

Tuesday,  October  14th.  My  occupations  have  been  very  regular, 
and  similar  for  a  week  past.  Last  Thursday  night  I  again  experienced 
a  total  want  of  sleep.  By  the  help,  however,  of  medecine  and  of  con- 
stant exercice  I  think  I  am  in  a  way  to  recover. 

[This  portion  of  the  diary  here  ends  abruptly.  The  last  three  words 
of  it  began  a  sentence  never  completed,  —  "  This  evening  my  — ." 
The  next  page  is  blank.  The  three  closing  entries,  those  of  October 
3d,  7th,  and  14th,  were  made  at  Braintree.  Mr.  Adams  remained  there 
from  October  3d  to  December  8th,  riding,  tramping  the  fields  and 
marshes  gun  in  hand,  and  reading  Gibbon's  "Decline  and  Fall,"  the 
"Institutes  of  Justinian,"  and  Foster's  "Crown  Law."  He  continued 
to  suffer  from  insomnia,  and  the  consequent  depression  of  spirits  found 
no  alleviation  from  attendance  on  church  services  conducted  by  Parson 
Wibird,  who,  he  emphatically  declared,  "  has  no  feeling."  From  the 
ministrations    of    the   Rev.   Oliver    Everett,   of   Dorchester,  father   of 

1  In  October,  1783,  J.  Q.  Adams  visited  London  with  his  father;  and,  in  the 
following  summer,  wlien  his  mother  and  sister  crossed  tlie  Atlantic  to  join  John 
Adams,  recently  appointed  Minister  to  France,  he  spent  a  month  in  London 
awaiting  their  arrivah  Letters  of  Mrs.  Adams,  (1848)  pp.  17i3,  185,  186;  J. 
Adams,  Works,  vol.  iii.  pp.  385-387. 

-  Doubtless  Rev.  John  Murray,  the  Universalist  preacher;  pastor  at  Glouces- 
ter, Mass.  See  Appleton,  Cyclopajdia  of  American  Biography ;  Babson,  llist. 
of  Gloucester,  pp.  429-439. 


DIARY   OP  JOHN  QUINCY  ADAMS.  169 

Edward  Everett,  who  occasionally  exchanged  pulpits  with  Mr.  Wibird, 
he  derived  more  satisfaction.  In  November  John  Adams  and  his  wife 
left  Braintree  to  go  to  New  York,  temporarily  the  seat  of  the  new 
Federal  Government,  in  which  Mr.  Adams  had  been  chosen  to  the 
office  of  Vice-President.  On  the  8th  of  December  J.  Q.  Adams  re- 
turned to  Newburyport,  resuming  his  studies  in  the  office  of  Mr. 
Parsons.  His  diary  was  now  reduced  to  daily  memoranda  of  a  single 
line  each,  and  so  continued  until  the  following  September  (1789).  The 
winter  of  1788-1789  was  passed  partly  at  Newburyport  and  partly  at 
Braintree,  reading,  riding,  skating,  and  "hunting  for  partridges  and 
quails,"  with  occasional  social  entertainments.  Among  the  law  books 
now  read,  he  noted  Barrington's  "Observations  on  the  Statutes"  and 
Buller's  "  Nisi  Prius."  He  became  also  intimate  with  the  family  of 
Mr.  Moses  Frazier,  of  Newburyport,  one  of  whose  daughters,  Mary, 
especially  attracted  him.  Rumors  of  a  marriage  engagement  were  in 
circulation  ;  and,  years  afterwards,  there  appeared  in  a  Newburyport 
paper  a  highly  colored  account  of  the  incident,  in  which  Mr.  Adams, 
then  ex-President  and  a  man  of  seventy,  was  made  to  declare  "that  in 
all  which  constitutes  genuine  beauty,  loveliness,  personal  accomplish- 
ments, intellectual  endowments  and  perfect  purity  of  life  and  heart, 
Miss  Mary  Frazier  excelled  "  anything  he  had  ever  known  of  "  the  most 
attractive  and  recognized  beautiful  among  the  female  sex  in  Europe 
and  America."  And  he  declared  that  he  "loved  her  then,"  and  loved 
"  her  memory  "  still.^  The  writer  of  this  over-colored  and  extremely 
apocryphal  narrative  then  went  on  to  add  that  J.  Q.  Adams  acknowl- 
edged to  him  an  engagement  with  Miss  Fi-azier,  but  on  the  understand- 
ing "  that  should  either  see  cause  to  change  their  mind  they  were  left 
free  to  do  so.  The  direct  cause  of  the  breaking  off  of  the  engagement 
[was]  because  of  the  very  proper  interference  and  advice  of  Miss 
Frazier'o  family  and  friends.  They  charged  that  Mr.  Adams  was  quite 
young  [twenty-two],  without  a  profession,  and  with  no  very  good  pros- 
pects as  to  the  future,"  etc.  And,  Mr.  Adams  is  alleged  to  have 
added,  "  In  this  advice  they  were  about  right,  for  I  then  certainly  had 
no  very  flattering  prospects,  near  or  remote."  The  writer  then  asserted 
that  the  tradition  in  Newburyport  was  that  Miss  Frazier  remained 
unmarried  until  after  the  news  reached  her  of  the  marriage  of  Mr. 
Adams,  in  London,  in  1797,  seven  years  later.  Concerning  this  epi- 
sode, Mr.  Adams  at  the  time  wrote  to  his  mother :  "  But  upon  one 
subject,  on  which  from  a  passage  in  your  letter  I  am  led  to  suppose  you 
are  under  some  apprehensions  on  my  account,  I  think  I  can  safely  assure 
you  they  may  be  quieted.  You  may  rest  assured,  my  dear  Madam,  that 
I  am  as  resolutely  determined  never  to  connect  a  woman  to  desperate 

1  Recollections  of  Newburyport  by  James  Morss,  "Newburyport  Herald/' 
June  30,  1864. 

22 


170  DIARY   OF  JOHN  QUINCY   ADAMS. 

fortunes,  as  I  am  never  to  be  indebted  to  a  woman  for  wealth.  The 
same  spirit,  I  presume,  will  operate  eijually  to  prevent  either  of  these 
cases,  and  you  shall  never  be  requested  for  your  consent  to  a  connec- 
tion of  mine,  until  I  am  able  to  support  that  connection  with  honor  and 
independence."  On  the  9th  of  August,  1789,  his  friend  and  fellow 
student,  William  Amory,  was  married  to  Lucy  Fletcher.  Meanwhile 
his  own  health  seems  to  have  been  in  great  degree  restored,  for  he 
notes  numerous  meetings  of  the  "club"  in  which  he  participated, 
sociable  evenings,  "noisy  walks"  and  serenades  "till  three  in  the 
morning."  One  day  they  indulge  in  "an  after  dinner  dance,  company 
small  but  agreealjle " ;  and,  the  next,  he  sees  "  the  ladies'  scheme  for 
a  sail  fall  through."  Altogether,  the  student  life  at  Newburyport 
seems  not  to  have  been  devoid  of  attractions.  Finally,  after  one 
of  many  evenings  passed  at  Mr.  Frazier's,  the  more  detailed  diary 
reopens.] 

Newbury-Port,  Sunday,  September  Gth,  1789. 

Twelve  months  have  nearly  elapsed  since  I  discontinued  this  journal 
altogether.  Several  months  of  ill  health  detained  me  at  Braiutree,  and 
wholly  disqualified  me  for  the  use  of  the  pen  ;  after  attending  the 
session  of  the  Supreme  Judicial  Court  at  Boston  in  February,  I 
return'd  to  this  town  on  the  2Gth  day  of  March,  since  which  my 
health  has  been  gradually  restored,  and  is  now  almost  as  good  as  it 
was  previous  to  my  sickness.  The  events  which  have  occurred  since 
1  have  omitted  to  record  them  have  not  been  sufficiently  interesting  to 
induce  me  to  regret  the  loss  ;  but  as  those  which  are  now  immediately 
before  me  may  be  more  important,  I  shall,  for  a  few  weeks  at  least, 
resume  the  practice,  which  sickness  at  first,  and  indolence  afterwards, 
led  me  to  disuse. 

7th.  1  have  for  several  months  past  intended  to  pay  a  visit  to  my 
friends  at  New  York ;  and  several  circumstances  concur  to  render  this 
period  the  most  eligible  for  that  purpose.  I  left  Newbury-Port  this 
morning  in  company  with  Mr.  Atkins,  Parson  Andrews,  and  Tom 
Hooper  who  are  going  to  Cambridge  to  attend  the  anniversary  of  the 
4>  B  K  which  was  deferr'd  fi'om  the  5th  inst'  till  to-morrow.  My 
intention  was  to  have  gone  from  Boston  in  the  stage,  which  is  to  pro- 
ceed on  Wednesday  for  New  York ;  but  on  my  arrival  in  town  I  found 
the  places  were  all  taken  up.  I  then  concluded  the  most  expeditious 
method  would  be  to  go  from  hence  to  Providence  by  land,  and  there 
take  a  passage  for  New  York  in  one  of  the  packets.  I  found  the  stage 
to  Providence  will  go  to-morrow  morning  at  four  o'clock.  Being  desti- 
tute of  cash,  I  obtained  of  my  friend  J.  Phillips  the  loan  of  a  sum  suffi- 
cient for  my  journey,  for  which  I  drew  an  order  upon  Dr.  Tufts.  I 
pass'd  the  evening  very  agreeably  with  W.  Crauch  at  IMr.  Dawes's, 


DIAKY   OF   JOHN  QUINCT   ADAMS.  171 

and  between  eleven  and  twelve  came  to  Hatch's  tavern,  from  whence 
the  stage  takes  its  departure.^ 

8th.  It  was  six  this  morning  before  the  stage  started.  I  had  two 
companions ;  one  a  Mr.  Wright  from  North  Carolina ;  the  other  a 
young  man  from  Connecticut  by  the  name  of  Lanman.'*  We  were 
tolerably  sociable.  Lanman  sung  a  number  of  songs  of  his  own  accord, 
and  sung  very  well.  But,  upon  being  requested  by  Mr.  Wright  to 
continue,  he  altogether  denied  that  he  could  sing  at  all.  W^e  break- 
fasted at  Dedham,  dined  at  Attleborough,  and  arrived  at  Providence  at 
about  six  in  the  evening.  We  stopped  at  Daggett's  tavern.  I  walk'd 
round  the  town  in  the  evening  with  Landman.  He  is  young  and 
communicative. 

9th.  I  walked  out  with  Lanman  this  morning,  and  went  to  the 
College,,  which  consists  only  of  one  building,^  nearly  as  long  as  two  of 
the  halls  at  Cambridge.  This  being  a  time  of  vacation  the  tutors  were 
absent  from  the  College,  so  that  we  had  not  an  opportunity  of  seeing 
the  library ;  which,  however,  is  very  small.  The  chambers  are  not,  I 
think,  so  well  arranged,  they  are  certainly  not  so  decent,  as  those  at 
Cambridge.  Mr,  John  Brown's  house  *  is  likewise  a  very  conspicuous 
building.  We  only  saw  the  outside  of  it,  which  is  the  most  magnificent 
and  elegant  private  mansion  that  I  have  ever  seen  on  this  continent. 
The  Baptist  church  ^  in  this  town  is  said  to  be  the  handsomest  house  of 
public  worship  in  America,  and  there  are  a  large  number  of  very  good 
private  houses.  The  streets  appear  to  be  busy,  and  every  thing  exhibits 
evidence  that  this  is  a  flourishiug  and  thriving  town.  But  the  people 
appear  much  aggrieved  by  the  proceedings  of  their  government,®  who 

1  Israel  Hatch  tlien  kept  the  White  Horse  Tavern,  Newbury  Street,  as  a  part 
of  Washhigton  Street  was  called.  It  stood  a  short  distance  south  of  the  present 
Adams  House.     See  Drake's  Old  Landmarks  of  Boston,  pp.  392,  393. 

"  Perhaps  James  Lanman  (Yale  College,  1788),  of  Norwich,  Conn.,  then 
(1789)  twenty  j-ears  old.  He  held  afterwards  numerous  important  oflBces ;  was 
United  States  Senator  1819-1825 ;  a  supporter  of  Crawford  for  the  Presidency ; 
a  Judge  in  the  Superior  Court  of  Connecticut  1826-1829;  mayor  of  Norwich 
1831-1834  ;  died  August  7,  1841.  Lanman,  Biographical  Annals  ;  J.  Q.  Adams, 
Memoirs,  etc. 

3  "University  Hall"  at  Brown;  then  under  the  presidency  of  James 
Manning. 

*  The  proprietor  was  a  prominent  and  patriotic  merchant,  who  planned  and 
promoted  the  attack  on  the  British  ship  "  Gaspee  "  in  1772. 

The  house  passed  by  inheritance  to  the  Herrisoffs,  and  then  was  purcliased 
by  Mrs.  Elizabetli  Gammeli.  It  was  lately  acquired  by  Mr.  Marsden  J.  Perry, 
and  is  being  amply  renovated,  but  the  original  style  is  carefully  preserved. 

s  A  fine  church,  built  in  1775,  from  the  designs  of  James  Gibbs,  an  English 
architect,  who  worked  in  the  style  of  Wren.  The  University  holds  its  exercises 
for  Commencement  there. 

6  There  was  much  dispute  concerning  the  adoption  of  the  Constitution  of  the 
United  States.  In  the  preceding  year  there  had  been  party  rancor  and  some 
violence.     See  Arnold,  History  of  liliode  Island,  vol.  ii.  pp.  541,  547. 


172  DIARY  OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAIHS. 

for  several  years  past  have  given  the  sanction  of  law  to  every  species 
of  iniquity.  Their  Supreme  Judicial  Court  are  now  in  session  at 
Providence.  I  went  into  Court  twice  this  forenoon ;  they  were  doing 
nothing,  and  the  appearance  of  the  Judges  was  a  perfect  burlesque 
upon  justice.  At  about  twelve  o'clock  we  went  on  board  the  packet 
Leopard,  having  for  fellow  travellers,  besides  the  two  gentlemen  with 
whom  I  came  from  Boston,  a  Mr.  Goldthwait,  a  merchant  of  Newport, 
whom  I  formerly  saw  at  the  Hague,  and  a  number  of  women  who 
appear  habituated  to  move  in  humble  stations  of  life.  There  was  a  man 
with  them,  who  entertained  us  very  highly  with  singing.  He  had  an 
inexhaustible  fund  of  songs  ;  but,  in  the  whole  collection,  there  was  not 
one  that  I  ever  heard  sung  before ;  nor  one  that  was  tolerably  good. 
Vulgarity  and  nonsense  were  completely  united  in  every  one  of  them. 
The  distance  between  Providence  and  Newport  is  about  thirty  miles. 
The  usual  passage  is  from  five  to  six  hours,  but  we  sailed  in  a  calm, 
and,  after  being  carried  down  by  the  tide  and  the  trifling  breezes  which 
arose  about  half  the  way,  we  were  obliged  to  come  to  anchor  in  order 
to  avoid  drifting  backward  by  means  of  the  tide,  which  had  turned 
against  us.  We  continued  at  anchor  from  seven  in  the  evening  to  one 
in  the  morning ;  and  then  again  took  advantage  of  the  tide,  and  of  a 
small  favourable  breeze  which  came  up.  The  cabin  was  small ;  the 
accommodations  not  sufficient  for  the  number  of  passengers ;  and  the 
beds  very  indifferent.  From  a  mixture  therefore  of  choice  and  neces- 
sity, I  walk'd  on  deck  a  great  part  of  the  night,  and  had  not  slept  an 
hour,  when,  at  six  in  the  morning,  we  arrived  at  Newport. 

10th.  We  put  up  at  Townsend's  tavern,  being  near  the  wharf  from 
whence  the  New  York  packets  sail.  I  engaged  my  passage  on  board 
the  Raynhler  packet,  Captain  Peterson,  who  intends  to  sail  to-morrow. 
I  paid  a  visit  to  Mr.  W.  Ellery,^  but  Almy  was  not  at  home.  I  endeav- 
oured to  sleep,  but  found  it  impossible.  Lanniau  had  letters  for 
Mr.  Marchant's  family ;  ^  and,  soon  after  dinner  called  at  Townsend's 
with  young  Marchant,  who  gave  me  an  invitation  to  drink  tea  with 
him,  and  I  accordingly  went.  There  was  some  company.  Mr.  Mar- 
chant  himself  is  gone  upon  a  deputation  to  New  York.  His  lady  was 
very  civil.  His  two  daughters  perform  very  well  upon  the  spinnet, 
and  accompany  their  performance  with  very  good  singing.     I  spent 

1  William  Ellery,  father  of  Mrs.  Francis  Dana  of  Cambridge,  a  signer  of  the 
Declaration  of  Independence  and  one  of  the  most  influential  members  of  the 
Congress  of  the  Confederation.  Almy  Ellery,  liis  daughter,  married  Hon.  William 
Stedman  ;  see  supra,  p.  14.  G.  C.  Channing,  Early  Recollections  of  Newport,  R.  I., 
pp.  207-210;  W.  R.  Staples,  Rhode  Island  in  the  Continental  Congress,  etc. 

2  Presumably  Henry  Marchant,  a  delegate  from  Newport  to  the  Congress  of 
the  Confederation  ;  very  active  in  securing  the  adoption  of  the  Constitution  of 
the  United  States  ;  appointed  by  President  Washington  District  Judge.  W.  R. 
Staples,  Rhode  Island  in  the  Continental  Congress,  etc. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN  QUINCY   ADAMS.  173 

the  afternoon  and  evening  very  agreeably,  but  retired  early,  being 
mudi  fatigued  after  a  sleepless  night  and  an  active  day. 

11th.  The  wind  is  pleased  to  postpone  our  departure  at  least  for 
one  day  more.  Landman  sailed  at  noon  in  a  small  boat  for  New-Lon- 
don, but  returned  before  night ;  not  being  able  to  proceed  further  than 
a  point  about  fifteen  miles  from  this.  A  packet  arrived  from  New  York 
this  day  after  a  passage  of  twenty-four  hours.  I  was  standing  upon  the 
wharf  when  she  arrived,  and  was  surprised  to  see  W.  Amory  ^  step 
from  her.  He  only  stopped  to  dine,  and  intends  going  on  as  expedi- 
tiously as  he  can  to  Boston.  I  took  the  opportunity  to  write  a  letter 
to  Bridge.  I  pass'd  the  afternoon  at  Mr.  Marchant's,  where  I  saw  a 
daughter  of  President  Stiles,  a  lady  of  great  vivacity,  entertaining 
conversation,  and  agreeable  manners,  but  no  beauty.  Mr.  Goldthwait 
called  upon  us,  and  invited  us  to  take  tea  with  him  ;  he  has  two  daugh- 
ters, who  have  no  particular  attractions  of  that  kind  which  inspires 
admiration  at  first  sight.  We  likewise  found  there  a  Mr.  Meyer,  whom 
I  once  saw  in  Boston  about  six  weeks  ago.  He  is  a  Philadelphian, 
but  is  settled  in  the  commercial  line  at  Cape  Francois.  There  is  a 
softness  in  his  character,  which  proceeds  perhaps  from  an  affectation  of 
great  sensibility.  He  is  apparently  very  fond  of  poetry,  and  is  well 
acquainted  with   the    English  poets.      His  quotations  from   Milton, 

1  The  following  is  from  the  diary  of  J.  Q.  Adams  kept  while  representing  the 
United  States  at  the  Hague  between  1794  and  1797.  Tlie  W.  Ainory  of  1795 
cannot  be  identified  positively  with  the  bearer  of  the  same  name  of  six  years 
previous :  — 

July  14,  1795.  "...  In  the  afternoon  W.  Amory  called  on  me  ;  said  he  was  a 
prisoner  of  war  to  the  French  army,  and  was  desirous  if  possible  to  be  liberated; 
that  he  had  been  sick  in  the  hospital  near  Rotterdam,  these  ten  months,  and 
being  now  upon  the  recovery,  and  having  an  opportunity  to  go  home,  he  was 
very  anxious  to  obtain  a  discharge.  I  wrote  immediately  to  the  Representative 
Richard  a  card,  requesting  to  know  when  1  could  speak  with  him  this  day. 
Towards  evening  his  Secretary  Brule  called  and  told  me  that  Richard  would  be 
at  home  the  remainder  of  the  day,  and  would  see  me  at  tlie  hour  most  con- 
venient to  myself.  I  went  immediately  afterwards,  and  stated  to  the  Represent- 
ative the  circumstances  of  Amory's  story  as  he  had  told  them  to  me,  told  him 
that  I  knew  him  personally  to  be  an  American,  and  was  much  acquainted  with 
his  family,  which  is  highly  respectable.  He  said  that  the  discharge  should  be 
granted  without  the  least  difBculty,  that  it  would  be  given  with  much  pleasure 
as  a  compliance  with  the  request  of  the  minister  from  a  friend  and  ally  of 
France,  and  if  I  would  send  the  person  to  him  in  the  morning  with  a  line  men- 
tioning his  name,  and  that  he  is  the  person  concerning  whom  I  had  now  spoken, 
he  would  immediately  give  the  order  necessary  for  his  discharge. 

"  15.  Amory  called  here  again  early  this  morning  ;  I  gave  him  the  letter  for 
the  Representative  Richard,  and  about  an  hour  afterwards  he  returned,  with  an 
order  from  him  for  the  discharge  with  permission  to  return  to  America.  I  then 
observed  to  Amory,  that  it  was  I  supposed  meant  simply  as  authorizing  him  to 
go  home,  and  it  was  perhaps  expected  that  he  should  not  go  to  England.  He 
said  he  certainly  should  not,  and  his  only  wish  was  to  return  to  his  own  country." 


174  DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

Shakespeare  and  Shenstone  are  perhaps  too  frequent ;  and  he  intro- 
duced them  in  a  company  where  no  person,  except  Lanman  and  my- 
self, appeared  to  have  any  taste  for  this  kind  of  literature.  His  own 
knowledge  of  the  belles  lettres  does  not  appear  to  extend  beyond  the 
English  language. 

12th.  We  are  still  detained  by  a  contrary  wind,  in  a  state  of  expec- 
tation and  suspense.  I  went  again  to  Mr.  Ellery's,  but  was  again 
unfortunate,  as  neither  his  son  nor  daughter  was  at  home.  I  pass'd 
the  afternoon  and  part  of  the  evening  with  Lanman,  at  Mr.  Marchant's. 
A  little  circumstance  took  place  which  gave  great  offense  to  Lanman. 
He  was  indeed  in  a  greater  passion  than  I  should  have  thought 
necessary. 

13th.  The  winds  are  still  unfavourable;  and  I  have  passed  another 
dull,  tedious  day  here.  In  the  hopes  that  by  some  alteration  in  the 
course  of  the  day  we  should  be  enabled  to  sail,  I  did  not  attend  pub- 
lic worship,  but  remained  at  my  lodgings,  and  having  found  a  volume 
of  Shakespeare  I  amused  myself  as  well  as  I  could  with  it.  I  took 
tea  at  Mr.  Goldth wait's,  where  I  again  found  Mr.  Meyer.  I  went  with 
him  to  hear  a  number  of  young  ladies  sing.  We  there  saw  Miss 
Ellery,  much  celebrated  for  beauty  ;  but  I  have  seen  much  handsomer 
women.  Landman  went  this  morning  from  hence  to  Norwich  on 
horseback.  ' 

14th.  After  a  detention  of  four  days  the  winds  at  length  have  be- 
come favourable  ;  and  at  about  seven  o'clock  this  morning  we  sailed 
from  the  wharf.  The  city  of  Newport  appears  to  advantage  from  this 
river;  but  in  itself  it  exhibits  a  melancholy  picture  of  declining  com- 
merce and  population.  Previous  to  the  late  war  it  contained  about 
10,000  inhabitants  ;  they  are  now  reduced  to  7,000.  Its  former  pros- 
perity was  chiefly  owing  to  its  extensive  employment  in  the  African 
slave  trade,  of  which  some  remnants  still  continue  to  support  it.  The 
town  is  large,  but  many  of  the  houses,  and  the  most  elegant  of  them,  are 
altogether  out  of  repair,  and  for  want  of  painting  make  a  dismal  appear- 
ance ;  the  streets  are  dull,  and  the  wharves  appear  more  frequented 
by  idlers  than  by  men  of  business.  We  had  fine  weather,  but  little 
wind ;  and  it  was  one  o'clock  afternoon  before  we  reached  Point  Judith, 
distant  about  tliirty  miles  from  Newport.  The  wind  freshened,  how- 
ever, in  the  afternoon,  and  at  midnight,  when  I  retired  to  bed,  we  had 
proceeded  more  than  half  the  way  on  our  passage.  My  fellow  passen- 
gers are  Mrs.  Wllkins  and  Miss  Winslow,  two  daughters  of  Parson 
Winslow,^  who  formerly  lived  at  Braintree.     Doctor  OUphant,  an  old 

1  Rev.  Edward  Winslow  (H.  C.  1741),  rector  of  Christ  Clnirch  in  Braintree 
1764-1777  ;  compelled  to  leave  tlie  town  because  lie  continued  to  pray  for  tlie 
king  according^  to  the  promise  in  his  ordination  onth  ;  died  in  New  York  in  1780, 
and  is  buried  beneath  the  altar  in  St.  Geor<re's  Chapel.  C.  F.  Adams,  Three 
Episodes  of  Massachusetts  History,  pp.  G31-633,  852-854. 


DIARY   OF   JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS.  175 

gentleman  who  lives  at  Newport.  He  has  been  married,  and  had  two 
children  since  he  was  seventy  years  old.  Mr.  Flagg,  a  gentleman  of 
fortune  from  South  Carolina;  he  has  with  him  the  most  elegant  phae- 
ton I  ever  saw.  Mr.  Wrigld,  with  whom  I  came  from  Boston  to  New- 
port, and  whom  I  have  already  mentioned.  Mr.  Stewart,  originally 
from  Maryland,  but  now  an  attorney  at  Hallifax,  Captain  Dunhar, 
an  half-pay  British  officer,  also  an  American  by  birth,  now  residing  at 
Quebec.  Mr,  Curre^  from  Pennsylvania,  but  a  British  officer  during 
the  war,  and  now  an  attorney  in  the  province  of  New  Brunswick. 
Mr.  Crook,  a  young  gentleman  who  practices  law  at  Newport,  and 
Doctor  Berry  (I  believe  it  is)  a  German,  who  is  now  settled  at  New 
York.  Our  packet  seems  to  have  two  commanders,  Caj^tain  Peterson 
and  Captain  Shaw,  they  alternately  take  the  lead,  and  in  concert  direct 
the  vessel. 

15th.  Our  wind  forsook  us  at  about  one  o'clock  this  morning,  and 
this  day  has  been  extremely  tedious.  There  was  so  little  wind  all  day 
that  we  scarcely  got  forward  thirty  miles  from  the  time  we  lost  our 
wind  till  six  this  evening,  when  it  again  breez'd  up ;  and  before  ten 
o'clock  it  blew  so  violently,  and  we  were  in  a  spot  where  the  sound 
was  so  narrow,  that  we  were  obliged  to  come  to  anchor  in  the  first 
harbour  we  could  reach.  It  was  very  dark ;  the  clouds  looked  black 
and  squally.  We  had  just  done  supper,  when  the  German  Doctor 
came  down  into  the  cabin  very  much  terrified,  and,  without  any  dis- 
cretion, talk'd  in  such  a  manner  as  was  most  likely  to  alarm  the  ladies. 
Curre  immediately  called  for  more  brandy,  and  concluded  tliat  the  best 
way  to  show  his  own  courage  was  to  be  extremely  profane.  He  rallied 
the  poor  Doctor  unmercifully,  and  mixed  with  his  sarcasms  a  shocking 
degree  of  impiety,  which  he  hinted  to  us  was  to  give  courage  to  the 
ladies ;  at  the  same  time  he  continued  adding  to  the  stock  of  his  arti- 
ficial bravery  until  he  could  no  longer  maintain  the  balance  of  his  feet, 
nor  the  free  use  of  his  tongue.  After  exhausting  all  his  sacrilegious 
wit,  merely  out  of  tenderness  for  the  ladies,  he  finally  staggered  off 
to  bed. 

16th.  The  wind  was  high  all  night,  but  at  dawn  of  day  we  got 
again  under  way.  As  the  morning  advanced  the  wind  abated,  and  we 
moderately  sailed  on  till  we  pass'd  the  rocks  at  Hell-Gate,  just  at  nine 
o'clock.  The  tide  had  just  turned  in  our  favour,  so  that  we  lost  noth- 
ing by  anchoring  last  night,  for  no  vessel  pretends  to  pass  this  danger- 
ous place  against  the  tide  nor  in  the  night.  As  we  came  through  just 
at  high  tide  we  saw  nothing  peculiar,  except  an  irregularity  in  the 
running  of  the  water ;  but  at  low  tide,  we  were  informed  there  are 

1  Ross  Curry,  a  lieutenant  in  the  Pennsylvania  Loyalists,  and  adjutant  of  the 
corps ;  received  half-pay  after  the  war,  and  lived  and  died  in  New  Brunswick. 
Sabine,  American  Loyalists,  vol.  1.  p.  353. 


176  DIARY   OF  JOHN  QUINCY  ADAMS. 

several  eddies  and  whirlpools  which  have  a  formidable  appearance. 
There  have  been  many  instances  of  vessels  overset  at  this  place,  and 
others  of  their  being  whirl'd  round  by  the  violence  of  the  eddy.  The 
name  itself  of  the  place  is  sufficiently  indicative  of  the  dangers  which 
sailors  have  apprehended  from  it.  From  this  place  to  the  city  of  New 
York,  the  distance  is  about  eight  miles ;  on  one  side  of  the  river  there 
are  a  number  of  islands  pleasantly  situated,  and  on  the  other  a  num- 
ber of  beautiful  country  seats,  which  have  a  charming  prospect  upon 
the  river,  and  afford  one  no  less  agreeable  to  the  traveller  upon  it. 
I  landed  at  about  ten  o'clock,  and  immediately  walked  out  to  my 
father's  house ;  ^  with  some  difficulty  I  found  it,  and  feeling  very  much 
fatigued,  having  slept  but  very  little  since  I  left  Newport,  I  went  to 
bed.  I  could  not  however  get  any  sleep.  The  President  and  his 
family  dined  here;  but  I  felt  quite  unfit  for  company,  and  therefore 
dined  alone.  Col'  Smith  and  my  brother  went  to  the  play ;  I  retired 
very  early  to  bed. 

17th.  A  Captain  McPherson,  of  Philadelphia,  breakfasted  here  this 
morning.  A  man  of  good  natural  parts ;  but  at  present  a  little  dis- 
ordered in  the  intellect.  He  is  now  employed  in  publishing  his  life 
and  works,  and  the  first  volume  is  soon  to  appear ;  he  had  with  him 
this  morning  one  of  the  first  proof  sheets,  which  he  shew  us.  He  there 
professes  to  be  an  unlettered  philosopher  and  acknowledges  that  al- 

1  The  house  in  question  was  on  Richmond  Hill,  so  called,  b^ing  between 
Greenwich  Village  and  the  city,  being  about  a  mile  and  a  half  from  Trinity 
Church  and  the  government  buildings  on  Wall  Street.  The  Houston  Street 
station  of  the  Ninth  Avenue  Elevated  Railway  now  stands  within  four  blocks  of 
its  site.  It  was  built  about  1770  by  Abraham  IMortier,  paymaster-general  of 
the  royal  army,  and  later  was  occupied  by  Aaron  Burr  at  the  time  of  his  duel 
■with  Hamilton.  Letters  of  Mrs.  Abigail  Adams,  (1848)  pp.  343,  344;  Memorial 
History  of  New  York,  vol.  ii.  p.  404,  vol.  iii.  p.  58;  T.  E.  V.  Smith,  New  York 
City  in  1789. 

Mrs.  John  Adams  gives  the  following  description  of  Richmond  Hill  in  a  letter 
to  her  sister,  Mrs.  Sliaw,  dated  September  27,  1789  :  — 

"  The  house  in  which  we  reside  is  situated  upon  a  hill,  the  avenue  to  which  is 
interspersed  with  forest  trees,  under  which  a  shrubbery  rather  too  luxuriant  and 
wild  has  taken  shelter,  owing  to  its  having  been  deprived  by  death,  some  years 
since,  of  its  original  proprietor  who  kept  it  in  perfect  order.  In  front  of  the 
house,  the  nol)le  Hudson  rolls  his  majestic  waves,  bearing  upon  his  bosom  innu- 
merable small  vessels,  which  are  constantly  forwarding  the  rich  products  of  the 
neighbouring  soil  to  the  busy  hand  of  a  more  extensive  commerce.  Beyond  the 
Hudson  rises  to  our  view  tlie  fertile  country  of  the  Jerseys,  covered  with  a  golden 
harvest,  and  pouring  forth  plenty  like  the  cornucopiag  of  Ceres.  On  the  right 
hand,  an  extensive  plain  presents  us  with  a  view  of  fields  covered  with  ver- 
dure and  pastures  full  of  cattle.  On  the  left,  the  city  opens  upon  us,  intercepted 
only  by  clumps  of  trees  and  some  rising  ground,  wiiich  serves  to  heighten  the 
beauty  of  the  scene  by  appearing  to  conceal  a  part.  In  the  back  ground,  is  a 
large  flower-garden,  enclosed  with  a  hedge  and  some  very  handsome  trees.  Oa 
one  side  of  it,  a  grove  of  pines  and  oaks  fit  for  contemplation." 


DIAEY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY  ADAMS.  177 

though  he  has  written  upon  every  science  excepting  Law,  yet  he  was 
never  regularly  taught  any  one.  He  seems  indeed  to  be  ignorant  of 
all  the  rules  which  have  been  form'd  for  the  improvement  of  the 
sciences ;  among  his  productions  are  four  plays,  which  he  highly 
values.  One  of  them,  entitled  IVie  artful  mother  ganders,  or  the  real 
humours  of  a  rookery,  he  describes  as  the  deepest  tragedy  that  ever 
was  written.  He  is  indeed  in  his  own  opinion  an  universal  genius, 
and  has  made  many  improvements  and  discoveries  in  diverse  arts  and 
sciences.  I  attended  this  morning  in  the  gallery  of  the  House  of 
Representatives,  to  hear  the  debates.  They  were  upon  the  judiciary 
bill.  Mr.  Gerry,  Mr.  Jackson,  Mr.  Burke,  Mr.  Stone,  Mr.  Lee, 
Mr.  Maddison  and  Mr.  Benson  all  took  a  part  in  this  debate.  But  I 
confess  I  did  not  perceive  any  extraordinary  powers  of  oratory  dis- 
played by  any  of  these  gentlemen.  The  subject  had  been  already  so 
much  discussed  that  little  could  be  said  of  further  importance.  The 
eloquence  had  all  been  exhausted,  but  the  spu'it  of  contention  still 
remained. 

18th.  I  attended  again  this  day  in  the  galleries  of  the  House.  The 
principal  debate  was  upon  the  salaries  of  the  Judges.  The  subject  was 
not  very  interesting ;  but,  like  almost  every  other  subject,  exhibited 
the  dithculty  of  adjusting  the  opposing  sentiments  which  direct  the 
conduct  of  men  living  in  different  climates  and  used  to  very  different 
modes  of  living.  Mr.  Dobhyn,  an  Irish  gentleman  who  arrived  in 
the  last  English  packet,  dined  with  us  this  day.  In  consequence  of 
unmerited  misfortunes  he  was  obliged  to  sell  a  patrimonial  estate 
which  had  been  six  hundred  years  in  the  family  ;  and  he  determined 
to  bring  the  remainder,  amounting  to  about  £6000  sterling,  and  settle 
in  some  part  of  America.  Mr.  T.  Morris,  a  son  of  the  Senator  from 
Pennsylvania,^  likewise  dined  with  us ;  he  is  studying  law  in  this  city. 

Mr.  Adams  remained  in  New  York  throughout  tlie  month  of 
September,  attending  the  sessions  of  Congress  and  the  recep- 
tions of  the  President  and  going  to  the  theatre.  On  the  5th 
of  October  he  started  for  Boston,  leaving  New  York  for  New- 
port at  5  P.  M.  He  reached  Newport  the  next  day,  the  6th,  at 
three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon.  It  took  him  the  whole  of  the 
next  day  to  go  from  there  to  Providence.  Thence  he  took 
the  stage  to  Boston,  arriving  at  dusk  on  the  evening  of  the 
8th.  He  then  returned  to  Newburyport.  The  following  let- 
ter to  his  mother  was  written  two  months  later ;  it  appears 

1  The  celebrated  Robert  Morris,  known  as  "the  Financier  of  the  Revolu- 
tion." His  son  Thomas,  here  mentioned,  was  subsequently  a  member  of  the 
New  York  bar,  and  at  one  time  United  States  Marshal  for  the  southern  district 
of  the  State  of  Kew  York. 


178  DIARY   OF  JOHN   QUINCY   ADAMS. 

to  have  been  the  first  communication  from  him  after  he  left 
New  York  :  — 

Newbdrt-Port,  December  otli,  1789. 
.  .  .  Two  and  twenty  hours  after  I  left  you  at  Ricliraond-Hill,  I 
landed  at  Newport,  and  the  Thursday  following  arrived  in  Boston.  I 
pass'd  two  or  three  days  at  Braintree ;  quite  sick  of  what  I  then  thought 
only  a  severe  cold.  I  have  since  been  induced  to  suppose  it  was  the  in- 
fluenza. This  disorder  has  since  then  been  almost  universal  in  this 
State;  and  I  have  been  upbraided  for  singularity  in  enjoying  good 
health  while  all  the  world  were  more  or  less  diseased.  It  has  not 
liowever  been  fatal  in  any  instance  that  has  come  to  my  knowledge  in 
this  neighbourhood.  When  I  say  I  have  enjoyed  good  health,  it  must 
be  understood,  as  they  say,  with  a  grain  of  salt.  The  ancient  quarrel 
between  the  powers  of  drowsiness  and  me  has  threatened  to  break  out 
again ;  and  a  few  nervous  twitches  have  hinted  to  me  the  propriety  of 
suffering  no  intermission  in  the  article  of  exercise.  I  have  scarcely 
been  out  of  Newbury -Port  since  my  return  from  New-York;  but  I 
intend  next  week  to  spend  a  day  or  two  at  Haverhill. 

I  was  not  one  of  the  choir  who  welcomed  the  President  to  New 
England's  shore,  upon  his  arrival  here  by  land.  I  was,  however,  in 
the  procession,  which  was  formed  here  to  receive  him,  in  humble 
imitation  of  the  capital.  And,  Avhen  he  left  us,  I  was  one  of  the 
respectable  citizens  (as  our  newspapers  term  them)  who  escorted  him 
on  horseback  to  the  lines  of  New-Hampshire. 

You,  my  dear  madam,  have  abundant  reason  to  know  that  your  eldest 
son  is  not  by  any  means  destitute  of  that  bubbling  passion  called 
Vanity ;  and  therefore  you  will  excuse  him,  and  allow  a  little  parental 
indulgence,  when  he  informs  you  of  the  petty  honours  which  accrued 
to  him  in  consequence  of  this  same  visit  of  the  President;  and  you 
will  make  all  the  necessary  allowances  if  he  states  facts,  which  are 
really  true,  in  such  a  manner  as  shall  exhibit  him  in  the  most  advan- 
tageous light  —  and  thus  I  begin. 

I  had  the  honour  of  paying  my  respects  to  the  President  upon  his 
arrival  in  this  town,  and  he  did  me  the  honour  to  recollect  that  he  had 
seen  me  a  short  time  before  at  New  York.  I  had  the  honour  of  spend- 
ing part  of  the  evening  in  his  presence  at  Mr.  Jackson's.  I  had  the 
honour  of  breakfasting  in  the  same  room  with  him  the  next  morning 
at  Mr.  Dalton's.  I  had  the  honour  of  writing  the  billet  which  the 
major  general  of  the  county  sent  him  to  inform  him  of  the  military 
arrangements  he  had  made  for  his  reception.  And  I  had  the  honour 
of  draughting  an  address  which,  with  many  alterations  and  additions 
(commonly  called  amendments),  was  presented  to  him  by  the  town  of 
Newbury-Port.     So  you  see 

"  I  bear  my  blushing  honours  thick  upon  me." 


DIARY   OF   JOHN  QUINCY   ADAMS.  179 

But  as  half  the  truth  is  oftentimes  a  great  falsehood  I  am  con- 
strained to  account  for  these  distinctions  in  a  manner  which  I  must 
honestly  confess  defalcates  considerably  from  the  quantum  of  my 
importance.  To  the  peculiar  civility  of  Mr.  Jackson  and  Mr.  Dalton, 
I  am  indebted  for  having  been  thus  admitted  into  the  company  of  the 
President.  One  of  the  major  general's  aid  de  camps  is  my  fellow  stu- 
dent; he  was  then  much  hurried  with  other  business  relating  to  the 
same  occasion,  and,  at  his  request,  I  wrote  the  billet.  Mr.  Parsons 
was  chosen  by  the  town  to  draught  the  address;  and  his  indolence 
was  accomodated  in  shifting  a  part  of  the  burthen  upon  his  clerk,  so 
that  all  my  dignities  have  not  been  sufficient  to  elevate  me  above  the 
insignificant  station  of  a  school-boy ;  in  which  character  I  still  remain, 
your  dutiful  sou.^  But  to  turn  from  trifling  to  a  subject  to  me  very 
serious,  I  must  observe  that  my  own  reflections  upon  the  subject  of  the 
place  of  my  future  residence  are  daily  becoming  more  and  more  per- 
plexing. You  well  know  the  objections  which  I  have  against  Braintree, 
and  I  may  safely  appeal  to  your  judgment  for  their  validity.  My 
father's  determined  predilection  is  the  only  circumstance  that  could 
give  that  place  any  claim  to  fixing  me,  under  the  present  relative 
situation  of  my  cousin  Cranch  and  me.  Boston  is  strongly  recom- 
mended to  me  by  several  of  my  friends,  whose  opinions  in  favour 
of  the  capital  are  much  more  favourable  than  my  own.  Greater 
necessary  expence,  more  necessary  dissipation,  and  a  more  numerous 
competition  for  the  favours  of  employment,  are  not  circumstances 
calculated  to  decide  my  preference.  This  town,  while  inhabited  by  the 
two  most  eminent  barristers  in  the  county  and  an  attorney,  who  though 
young  is  much  respected,  does  not  offer  me  a  prospect  in  any  manner 
alluring;  though  I  sh[ould]  here  enjoy  the  advantage  of  being  more 
extensively  known  than  in  any  [other  town]  of  the  Commonwealth. 
However,  I  will  postpone  the  full  discussion  of  [this  subject]  till  the 
appointment  of  our  two  Judges  shall  take  place ;  after  which  I  shall 
state  my  case  fully  to  my  father,  and  found  my  determination  upon 
his  final  opinion.  .  .  . 

Your  affectionate  Sou,  J.  Q.  Adams. 

1  It  is  worthy  of  note  that  the  part  of  Theophilus  Parsons  in  the  preparation 
and  presentation  of  this  address  lias  been,  in  the  course  of  time,  entirely  lost  sight 
of,  and  the  histories  of  Newburyport  attribute  it  without  reservation  to  J.  Q. 
Adams.  See  Currier,  "  Quid  Newbury,"  p.  556  ;  E.  V.  Smith,  Hist,  of  Newbury- 
port, pp.  133,  32i,  325;  Joshua  Coffin,  Hist,  of  Newbury,  p.  264. 


INDEX. 


INDEX. 


A. 

Abbot,  Rev.  Abiel,  elected  secretary  of 
<i>  B  K,  '26;  note  concerning,  26,  45. 

Abbot,  Benjamin,  note  on,  45;  college 
oration  of,  on  slave-trade,  124 ;  note 
on,  124;  orator  at  Harvard  Com- 
mencement, 1788,  154;  in  list  of 
graduates,  155. 

Abbot,  John,  chosen  tutor  at  Harvard 
College,  19;  biographical  note  con- 
cerning, 19. 

Abbot,  Capt.  John,  note  on,  124. 

Abbot,  /lec.Jolin  Emery,  allusion  to,  45. 

Abbot,  William  Lovejoy,  of  Andover, 
diarist  visits,  122;  diarist's  charac- 
terization, in  note  on,  122. 

Abney,  Sir  Thomas,  allusion  to,  13.3. 

Achille,  French  vessel  of  war,  in  Bos- 
ton harbor,  166. 

Adams,  Mrs.  Abigail,  allusion  to,  10, 
20,  22,  32 ;  Dr.  Kirkland  preaches 
memorial  sermon  for,  51 ;  letter  from 
diarist  to,  73,  74,  75;  arrival  of,  at 
home  after  long  absence  in  Europe, 
144;  allusion  of  diarist  to,  as 
"Madam,"  152;  describes  her  home 
at  Richmond  Hill,  176;  letter  of 
J.  Q.  Adams  to,  178,  179. 

Adams,  Brooks,  allusion  to,  127. 

Adams,  Charles,  accompanies  his  father 
and  brother,  John  Quincy,  to  Europe, 
7;  biograpliical  note  concerning,  11; 
part  of,  at  Commencement,  28;  note 
concerning,  28 ;  diarist  lodges  with,  at 
Hingham,  53;  allusion  to,  54,  56; 
visits  Newburyport,  90,  91,  92;  re- 
turns to  Braintree  and  Cambridge, 
92;  allusion  to,  128,  145;  arrives  at 
Braintree  from  Cambridge,  151  ; 
visits  his  brother  at  Newburyport, 
167. 


Adams,  Charles  Francis  (Sr.),  allusion 
to,  28. 

Adams,  Henry,  reference  to  Historical 
Essays  of,  8,  14,  19,  52,  88. 

Adams,  John,  diary  of,  alludes  to  his 
son,  6;  goes  to  Europe  with  his  son, 
6;  returns,  7  ;  goes  again  to  Europe, 
with  two  sons,  7  ;  represents  United 
States  near  Court  at  St.  James,  9 ;  re- 
turns to  America,  9 ;  becomes  Vice- 
President,  9 ;  diarist  alludes  to,  41 ; 
note  on,  41 ;  Dr.  Kirkland  preaches 
memorial  sermon  for,  51 ;  his  "  De- 
fence of  the  American  Constitu- 
tions," allusion  to,  120;  letter  from, 
to  son,  John  Quincy,  125;  arrives 
home,  after  residence  near  Court  at 
St.  James,  143;  extract  from  letter 
of,  giving  his  impressions  on  return- 
ing home,  after  a  long  absence  in 
Europe,  144;  at  his  home  at  Brain- 
tree, 145;  arrival  of  goods  of,  145; 
books  of,  note  on,  145;  visits  Cam- 
bridge, 147 ;  attends  Commencement 
at  Cambridge,  153;  elected  Vice- 
President  of  the  United  States,  and 
removes  to  New  York,  the  temporary 
seat  of  government,  169;  house  of, 
in  New  York,  note,  176;  entertains 
President  Washington  and  family  at 
dinner,  176. 

Adams,  John  Quincy,  once  member  of 
First  Congregational  Society,  New- 
buryport, 5  ;  extracts  from  diary  of, 
read  at  anniversary  of  First  Congre- 
gational Church,  Newburyport,  5; 
student  in  office  of  Theopliilus  Par- 
sons, 5  ;  calls  his  diary  "  Ephemeris," 
5;  decline  of  health  of,  6;  suffers 
from  insomnia,  6;  accompanies  his 
father  to  Europe,  6 ;  attends  school 
near  Paris,  6;  becomes  proficient  in 


184 


INDEX. 


French,  6;  returns  home  on  frigate 
"Sensible,"  6  ;  La  Luzerne  and  Mar- 
Lois  liis  companions,  6 ;  tea(;hes  Mar- 
bois  E^nglish,  G;  commended  by  Mar- 
bois,  7 ;  reaches  America,  7 ;  and 
Braintree,  7 ;  again  embarks  for 
Europe  with  his  father,  7 ;  goes  to 
Trance  by  wny  of  Spain,  7  ;  remains 
six  years  in  Europe,  7  ;  meets  Eraiilc- 
lin  and  Jefferson,  7 ;  admiration  of, 
for  latter,  7 ;  a  student  at  University 
of  Leyden,  7  ;  later  memories  of,  7  ; 
at  Harvard  University,  7  ;  graduates, 
8;  sets  out  by  stagecoach  for  New- 
buryport,  29,30;  arrives  at  destina- 
tion, 30;  enters  office  of  Tlieophilus 
Parsons  as  student  of  law,  30 ;  begins 
study  of  law,  30 ;  reads  Robertson, 
31,  32;  and  Vattel,  32;  is  exempt 
from  military  duty,  32 ;  comments  on 
capital  punishment  for  theft  and 
treason,  33;  comments  on  leniency 
shown  participants  in  Shays's  Rebel- 
lion, 33;  passes  a  convivial  evening, 
to  his  regret  later,  41;  industry  of, 
as  a  student,  42;  as  a  musician,  45; 
attends  a  ball,  46;  sets  out  on  liorse- 
back  for  Boston,  50;  lodges  by  the 
■way  at  Haverhill,  50;  reaches  Boston 
and  proceeds  to  Braintree.  51 ;  goes 
to  Hinghara  to  attend  an  ordination, 
51 ;  makes  satirical  distinction  be- 
tween "  rabble  "  and  "  genteel  com- 
pany," 53  ;  leaves  Hingham  for  Brain- 
tree and  goes  thence  to  Boston,  54, 
55;  attends  court  in  Cambridge  and 
comments  thereon,  56,  67  ;  indulges  in 
pessimistic  reflections,  02;  observes 
the  effects  of  tlie  passions  .and  opera- 
tions of  human  nature  and  gravely 
comments  thereon,  64,  65;  suffers 
extraordinary  attack  of  low  spirits, 
68;  comment  of,  on  early  rising,  70; 
regards  his  prospects  as  doubtful,  71 ; 
reflects  upon  the  danger  in  making 
his  journal  of  too  personal  a  nature 
since  he  cannot  be  fully  assured  that 
it  will  be  kept  secret,  72;  letter  of, 
to  his  mother,  73,  74,  75 ;  expresses 
disapproval  of  proposed  Federal  Con- 
stitution, 75 ;  reflections  of,  on  close 
of  the  year,  77  ;  contemplates  discon- 
tinuing his  journal,  78;  attended  an 
evening  party,  with  "kissing  plays," 


which  he  characterizes  contempt- 
uously, 78;  again  indulges  in  pessi- 
mism, 70;  his  opinion  of  profession 
of  medicine,  81 ;  chides  liiniself  for 
lack  of  diligence  in  study,  82;  again 
accuses  himself  of  indolence,  84; 
goes  on  a  sleighing  party,  87  ;  dislike 
of,  for  poetry,  88;  again  reproaches 
himself  for  slow  progress  in  studies, 
88,  80 ;  again  complains  of  low  spirits, 
92 ;  comments  upon  action  of  Massa- 
chusetts State  Convention  in  ratify- 
ing Federal  Constitution,  93;  not 
wliolly  pleased  therewith,  93;  com- 
plains of  insomnia,  95;  criticises  Mr. 
Parsons's  idea  of  politics,  96;  plays 
upon  the  flute,  96  ;  attends  ball  with 
Hannah  Greenleaf,  90;  amusing  com- 
ment upon  same,  96,  97;  attends  ses- 
sions of  New  Hampshire  Federal  Con- 
stitutional Convention  at  Exeter,  and 
comments  thereon,  100,  101 ;  his  con- 
temptuous opinion  of  Dartmouth 
College  and  tlie  men  of,  76,  77,  110; 
criticises  Gibbon,  and  Gibbon's  critic, 
Knox,  118;  goes  to  Salisbury  to  see 
a  launching,  114;  letter  from,  to  his 
father,  discussing  Massachusetts  elec- 
tion, 119;  plans  a  journey  to  Cam- 
bridge and  Braintree,  121 ;  sets  out 
upon  same,  122;  reaches  Cambridge, 
122 ;  attends  exercises  at  Harvard, 
and  indulges  in  social  pleasures,  124; 
goes  to  Braintree,  125;  letter  from 
father  to,  125;  leaves  Braintree  for 
Cambridge,  128;  from  thence  to  New- 
buryport,  129 ;  records  his  anxiety 
concerning  his  future  prospects,  134; 
reflections  of,  upon  the  death  of  the 
young,  138;  is  informed  of  his  father's 
arrival  home,  after  residence  near 
Court  at  St.  James,  143 ;  sets  out  for 
Boston  and  Braintree,  143;  greets 
his  motlier  on  her  return,  at  Boston, 
144 ;  meets  his  father  at  Braintree, 
145;  assists  in  unpacking  and  ar- 
ranging books  and  furniture,  145, 
146;  leaves  Braintree  for  Cambridge, 
to  attend  exercises,  146 ;  returns  to 
Braintree,  150 ;  reaches  age  of  twenty- 
one,  152  ;  reflections  concerning  that 
event,  152;  attends  Conmiencement 
at  Harvard,  153  ;  returns  to  Braintree, 
thence  to  Nevvburyport,  to  resume 


INDEX. 


185 


his  law  studies,  156 ;  invited  to  speak 
liefore  tlie  <t>  B  K,  159;  addresses 
$  B  K,  165;  is  complimented  by  the 
French  consul,  166  ;  visits  Braintree, 
166;  returns  to  his  studies  at  New- 
buryport,  166 ;  troubled  with  insom- 
nia, 167  ;  obliged  to  relinquish  study 
and  returns  to  Braintree,  168 ;  life  at 
Braintree,  168,  16'.);  returns  to  New- 
buryport,  and  resumes  studies,  169; 
becomes  intimate  in  family  of  Moses 
Frazier,  169;  rumors  of  marriage  en- 
gagement with  IMary  Frazier,  169; 
quotation  of  alleged  laudatory  re- 
marks concerning  same,  169;  inti- 
macy broken  off,  169  ;  writes  to  his 
motlier  concerning,  169,  170;  health 
of,  restored,  170;  participates  in 
social  affairs,  170;  sets  out  on  a 
journey  to  New  York,  by  way  of 
Providence,  170;  reaches  Provi- 
dence, 171;  visits  Brown  University, 
171 ;  describes  and  comments  upon 
city,  171 ;  takes  packet  for  Newport, 
172;  reaches  Newport  after  long 
delay,  172;  takes  passage  for  New 
York  by  packet,  172;  detained  at 
Newport  by  contrary  winds,  172, 
173,  174;  sets  sail  for  New  York, 
174;  voyage,  174,  175;  arrival  of,  at 
New  York,  176;  visits  his  father, 
then  Vice-President  of  the  United 
States,  176;  attends  sessions  of  Con- 
press,  176,  177;  returns  to  Boston, 
177;  and  Newburyport,  177;  letter 
of ,  to  his  mother,  178,  179;  aids  in 
receiving  President  Washington  on 
his  visit  to  New  England,  178,  179. 

Adams,  Rev.  Phineas,  diarist  alludes 
to,  13;  biographical  note  concerning, 
13. 

Adams,  Samuel,  allusion  to,  17,  27,  87 ; 
candidate  for  lieutenant-governor, 
119. 

Adams,  Dr.  Samuel  (Jr.),  death  of,  re- 
corded, 86,  87  ;  note  on,  87. 

Adams,  Solomon,  conference  by,  at 
Harvard  Commencement,  154;  in 
list  of  graduates,  1788,  15-5. 

Adams,  Susanna  Boylston,  grand- 
mother of  diarist,  23;  note  concern- 
ing, 23. 

Adams,  Thomas  Boylston,  biograph- 
ical note  concerning,  11 ;  allusion  to, 


24,  55;  visits  Newburyport,  90,  91, 
92;  returns  to  Braintree  and  Cam- 
bridge, 92 ;  allusion  to,  131,  143 ; 
Greek  dialogue  of,  at  Harvard  ex- 
hibition, 146 ;  arrives  at  Braintree 
from  Cambridge,  151;  in  list  of 
graduates,  1788,  155;  leaves  Brain- 
tree for  Haverhill,  in  company  with 
diarist,  156,  157;  allusion  to,  166. 

Allen,  Rev.  Jonathan,  allusion  to,  48; 
note  on,  48  ;  wife  of,  49 ;  note  on,  49 ; 
preaches  at  Newburyport,  118,  140. 

Allyn,  Rev.  John,  orator  at  Harvard 
Commencement,  1788,  154 ;  note  on, 
154. 

Ames,  Fisher,  member  Federal  Consti- 
tutional Convention,  allusion  to,  86. 

Amory,  William,  fellow  student  of  law 
with  diarist,  36,  37,  41,  42,  46,  61,  62, 
63,  76,  84,  85,  93,  94,  96,  98,  102,  107, 
109,  110,  111,  114,  110;  admitted  to 
practice,  117 ;  extended  character- 
ization of,  117;  note  on,  117;  to 
open  an  ofSce  in  Salem,  160;  allu- 
sion to,  162,  166  ;  marriage  of,  to 
Lucy  Fletcher,  170;  diarist  meets 
him  in  Newport,  173. 

Andover  Theological  Seminary,  allu- 
sion to,  39. 

Andover,  town  of,  allusion  to,  77. 

Andrews,  Rev.  John,  formerly  pastor  of 
First  Congregational  Church,  New- 
buryport, 6;  breakfasts  with  dia- 
rist, 10 ;  note  concerning,  10  ;  allusion 
to  marriage  of,  15  ;  diarist  breakfasts 
with,  20  ;  returns  from  Hingham,  20 ; 
allusion  to,  21,  24,  27,  28,  54,  129  ; 
diarist  criticises  sermon  of,  130 ; 
allusion  to,  131,  138,  156,  157,  158, 
160,  101,  163,  164,  165,  167,  170. 

Antifederalist,  diarist  is  so  called  by 
his  acquaintance,  93. 

Applause,  at  Harvard  Commencement, 
1788,  checked  by  President  Willard, 
154. 

Ashes,  pot  and  pearl,  manufacture  of, 
16. 

Atherton,  Dr.  Israel,  of  Lancaster, 
allusion  to,  99. 

Atherton,  Joshua,  opposes  Federal 
Constitution  in  New  Hampshire  Con- 
vention, 101 ;  note  on,  101. 

Atkins,  Dudley  (Sr.),  note  concerning, 
35. 


186 


INDEX. 


Atkins,  Dudley  (Jr.),  diarist  visits,  31, 

34 ;    biographical  note  on,   34,   35 ; 

assumes  the    name    of    Tyng,    34; 

allusion  to,  Gl,  62,  65,  68,  85,  88,  106, 

110,   111,   112,   134;     characterized, 

134,  135  ;  allusion  to,  170. 
Atkins,  Rebecca,  note  on,  35 ;  allusion 

to,  62,  161. 
Atkins,   Sarah   Kent,  35;  allusion  to, 

131,  134,  136,  140,  142,  161. 
Auteuil,   Adams  returns    home   from, 

7,  144. 


B. 


Bacon's  "Pleas  and  Pleadings,"  dia- 
rist begins  perusal  of,  143,  158. 

Bacon's  (Sir  Francis)  "The  Elements 
of  Common  Law,"  127. 

Badger,  Miss,  allusion  to,  124. 

Bancroft,  Rev.  Aaron,  admitted  a 
member  of  <t  B  K,  27;  note  con- 
cerning, 27,  28. 

Bancroft,  Thomas,  graduate  of  Har- 
vard College,  1788,  155. 

Baptist  Churcli  (First),  at  Providence, 
171;  note  on,  171. 

Barker,  Br.  Joshua,  elected  a  member 
of  <I>  B  K,  28  ;  note  concerning,  28. 

Barnard,  Rev.  Thomas,  allusion  to,  and 
note  on,  133 ;  allusion  to,  136. 

Barrell,  Miss,  diarist  meets  at  Haver- 
hill, 48. 

Barrington's  "  Observations  on  the 
Statutes,"  diarist  reads,  169. 

Barron,  Oliver,  graduate  of  Harvard 
College,  class  of  1788,  155. 

Bartlett,  Bailey,  allusion  to,  11,  17 ; 
biographical  note  concerning,  17. 

Bartlett,  William,  plaintiff  iu  an  inter- 
esting case,  39,  40 ;  note  on,  39,  40 ; 
allusion  to,  48. 

Bartlett,  Mrs.,  diarist  visits,  157. 

Bass,  Rev.  Edward,  diarist  hears  ser- 
mon from,  65;  and  comments  thereon, 
65;  note  on,  65;  Christmas  sermon 
of,  75;  allusion  to,  116. 

Bass,  Mrs.,  allusion  to,  142. 

Bastille,  allusion  to  storming  of,  9. 

Baxter,  Stephen,  graduate  of  Harvard 
College,  1788,  155. 

Bayley,  Sarah,  prosecuted  by  Mcln- 
tier  for  slander,  35 ;  diarist's  com- 
ment on,  36. 


"  Blackstone's  Commentaries,"  diarist 
begins  perusal  of,  37  ;  allusion  to,  42 ; 
diarist  controverts  author's  idea  of 
right  of  expatriation,  42 ;  allusion 
to,  44,  45,  61,  62,  63,  64;  diarist 
completes  reading  of,  69 ;  allusion 
to,  72,  107  ;  note  on,  107 ;  allusion 
to.  111,  131,  133,  140,  160. 

Blair's  "  Lectures  on  Uhetorie  and 
Belles  Lettres,"  diarist  reads,  31 ; 
note  concerning,  31. 

Blake,  George,  disputant  at  Harvard, 
123 ;  has  English  oration  at  Harvard 
exhibition,  146;  comment  thereon, 
147. 

Blake, ,  manages  a  dance  at  Hing- 

hara,  54. 

Blodget,  Caleb,  allusion  to,  157. 

Blodget,  S.,  allusion  to,  157. 

Beacon  Hill,  diarist  climbs  to  top  of, 
156. 

Beale,  Benjamin,  allusion  to,  and  note 
on,  152. 

Beale,  Capt.,  diarist  alludes  to,  22. 

Beane,  Rev.  Samuel  C,  pastor  of  First 
Congregational  Church,  Newbury- 
port,  6. 

Bellamy,  Rev.  Joseph,  allusion  to,  6.3. 

Benson,  Egbert,  Representative  in  Con- 
gress, allusion  to,  177. 

Bequet,  Francis  Michael,  note  on,  107. 

Berry,  Dr.,  fellow-passenger  with  diarist 
on  voyage  to  New  York,  175. 

Beverly  ferry,  bill  for  bridge  over,  re- 
jected, 56;  diarist  crosses,  129. 

Bologna  sausage,  witticism  concerning, 
98. 

"  Boston,"  frigate,  John  Adams  and  his 
son  sail  for  Europe  in,  6. 

Boston,  town  of,  allusion  to,  9;  diarist 
visits  court  at,  28,  55,  56. 

Bourne,  Jud(je  William,  allusion  to,  68. 

Bowdoin  College,  allusion  to,  20. 

Bowdoin,  Gov.  James,  leniency  of, 
toward  participators  in  Shays's  Re- 
bellion, 33. 

Bowman,  Nathaniel,  allusion  to,  122; 
note  on,  122. 

Boyd,  Robert,  allusion  to,  98. 

Brackett's  Tavern,  in  Boston,  148,  150. 

Bradbury,  Francis,  allusion  to,  49; 
note  on,  49;  allusion  to,  69,  87. 

Bradbury,  Frank,  allusion  to,  106,  117, 
118. 


INDEX. 


187 


Bradbury,  George,  allusion  to,  38 ;  allu- 
sion to,  and  note  on,  77  ;  allusion  to, 
90,  91,  124. 

Bradbury,  Harriet,  allusion  to,  and  note 
on,  107,  117. 

Bradbury,  Judge  Tiieophilus,  allusion 
to,  34,  38,  40 ;  note  on,  38,  40 ;  allu- 
sion to,  42,  61,  77,  82,  91 ;  note  on, 
91 ;  diarist  passes  evening  at  house 
of,  96,  106,  118,  131,  138,  140. 

Bradford,  town  of,  allusion  to,  48. 

Bradisli's  Tavern,  at  Cambridge,  allu- 
sion to,  147 ;  diarist  stops  at,  165. 

Braintree,  town  of,  the  Adamses  re- 
turn to,  7;  allusion  to,  9,  21,  23,  34; 
diarist  reaches,  51 ;  allusion  to,  65, 
121,  128;  diarist  meets  his  fatlier  at, 
on  hitter's  return  from  Europe,  145 ; 
diarist  visits,  166. 

Breck,  ^[l■.,  allusion  to,  157. 

Brest,  French  fleet  sails  for,  34. 

Bridge,  James,  classmate  of  diarist,  15 ; 
note  concerning,  15;  allusion  to,  105; 
diarist  meets,  at  Cambridge,  148; 
characterization  of,  and  extended 
note  on,  148,  149,  150;  visits  New- 
buryport,  165;  allusion  to,  166,  167, 
173. 

Bridgewater,  town  of,  allusion  to,  20. 

Brigham,  Joseph,  graduate  of  Harvard 
College,  1788,  155. 

Brookfield,  town  of,  allusion  to,  99. 

Brooks,  Mercy,  diarist  meets  and  com- 
ments upon,  43,  44 ;  note  on,  43. 

Brown,  Rev.  Elijah,  allusion  to,  27. 

Brown,  John,  mansion  of,  at  Provi- 
dence, 171;  note  on,  171. 

Brown,  Rev.  John,  gives  charge  at  or- 
dination of  Rev.  Henry  Ware,  51; 
note  on,  51. 

Brown,  il/r.,  of  Newburyport,  allusion 
to,  139,  159. 

Brown, ,  diarist  dances  at  rooms  of, 

124. 

Brown  University,  diarist  visits  and 
describes,  171. 

Buffon's  "Natural  History  of  Man," 
diarist  reads,  62;  and  comments 
upon,  63. 

Buffon's  "  Theory  of  the  Earth,"  diarist 
reads,  60;  and  comments  upon,  61; 
note  on,  60 ;  diarist  comments  further 
upon,  61,  62. 

BuUer's  Nisi  Prius,  diarist  reads,  169. 


Burke,  Edanus,  Representative  in  Con- 
gress, aUusion  to,  177. 

Burney's  (Fanny)  "Cecilia,"  diarist 
reads  and  conmients  thereon,  79,  80; 
note  on,  79. 

Burr,  Rev.  Jonathan,  resigns  tutorsliip 
at  Cambridge,  19;  biographical  note 
concerning,  19;  Rev.  Simeon  Howard 
preaclies  at  installation  of,  28. 

Byfield,  Rev.  Elijah  Parish  ordained 
at,  71. 

c. 

Cabot,  George,  member  of  Federal 
Constitutional  Convention,  allusion 
to,  86. 

Cabot,  Joseph,  conference  by,  at  Har- 
vard Commencement,  1788,  154;  in 
list  of  graduates,  1788,  155. 

Callahan,  Capt.  Jolm  (master  of  vessel 
■which  brought  John  Adams  on  his 
return  home  from  St.  James),  allu- 
sion to,  125,  126,  132 ;  rumor  of  his 
arrival  at  Boston,  139  ;  arrival  of,  at 
Boston  (bringing  John  Adams),  143  ; 
allusion  to,  151. 

Cambridge,  town  of,  diarist  visits,  18, 
19,  28 ;  receives  letters  from,  35 ;  at- 
tends court  in,  56;  allusion  to,  121  ; 
diarist  attends  Commencement  in, 
154,  155;  diarist  visits  for  purpose 
of  addressing  <!>  B  K,  165,  166. 

Cape  Ann,  a  baU  at,  110,  111. 

Cape  Fran9ois,  allusion  to,  173. 

Carter,  Hannah,  of  Newburyport,  allu- 
sion to,  55. 

Carter,  Joshua,  note  concerning,  32. 

Carter,  Mary,  biographical  notice  of, 
32;  allusion  to,  136. 

Carter,  Nathaniel,  of  Newburyport, 
diarist  visits,  32 ;  allusion  to,  36,  41, 
42,  77,  80,  136,  139, 140,  143,  160,  163, 
167. 

Carter,  Mrs.  Nathaniel,  allusion  to,  136, 
137. 

Carter,  Nathaniel,  Jr.,  allusion  to,  32, 
136. 

Gary,  Rev.  Thomas,  minister  at  New- 
buryport, 34  ;  biographical  note  on, 
34,  37 ;  diarist  criticises  sermon  of, 
44,  45  ;  allusion  to,  49,  68,  70 ;  diarist 
criticises  sermon  of,  70  ;  allusion  to, 
77,  83,  86;  iUnesa  of,  99,  102,  105; 


188 


INDEX. 


recovers  from  illness,  108;  allusion 
to,  118,  131,  133,  136,  167,  163. 

Caryl,  George,  graduate  of  Harvard 
College,   1788,  155. 

Casey,  (Japt.,  at  St.  John's  Day  social 
observance,  75 ;  allusion  to,  102. 

Catherine  II.,  allusion  to,  8. 

Cazneau,  Capt.,  allusion  to,  102. 

Cazneau,  Miss,  diarist  passes  evening 
at  home  of,  67 ;  and  cliaracterizes, 
67  ;  visits,  77  ;  discusses,  80  ;  meets, 
88;  allusion  to,  96,  112,  120;  satirical 
lines  on,  from  diarist's  poem,  "  The 
Vision,"  120. 

Cazneau,  Mrs.,  allusion  to,  88. 

"  Cecilia,"  Fanny  Burney's,  diarist 
reads,  and  comments  on,  79,  80 ; 
note  on,  79. 

Chandler,  Thomas,  diarist  meets,  and 
note  on,  166. 

Channing,  Mr.  and  il/rs.  William,  of 
Rhode  Island,  at  Cambridge,  147. 

Channing,  Rev.  \Yiliiam  EUery,  D.D., 
allusion  to,  note,  147. 

Charlestown  bridge,  allusion  to,  60. 

Chastellux,  Marquis  de,  allusion  to, 
35. 

Chelmsford,  town  of,  allusion  to,  20. 

Child,  Caleb,  college  classmate  of 
diarist,  123. 

"Chinese  Philosopher,  Letters  of  a," 
diarist  reads,  86. 

Cincinnati,  order  of,  Gen.  William  Hull 
speaks  before,  in  Old  Brick  Church, 
150. 

Clap,  Capt.,  allusion  to,  54 ;  remark  of, 
54. 

Clarke,  Edward,  college  friend  of  dia- 
rist, allusion  to,  20,  35  ;  note  on,  35  ; 
allusion  to,  122  ;  graduate  of  Harvard 
College,  class  of  1788,  155. 

Clarke,  Rev.  Jonas,  allusion  to,  27; 
daughter  of,  marries  Benjamin 
Green,  27,  28;  daughters  of,  124; 
note  on  latter.  124,  125. 

Clay,  Henry,  allusion  to,  note,  149. 

Clock,  on  Mr.  Murray's  meeting-house, 
queer  antic  of,  81. 

Coates,  Capt.  David,  allusion  to,  87. 

Coates,  Elizabeth,  diarist  dances  with, 
87  ;  and  characterizes,  87,  88 ;  dia- 
rist dances  with,  94 ;  allusion  to,  97, 
157. 

Cochran,  Capt.,  allusion  to,  41. 


Coffin,  Charles,  allusion  to,  41 ;  allusion 
to  and  note  on,  79. 

Coffin,  Mrs.  Charles,  allusion  to,  104. 

"  Coke  on  Littleton,"  diarist  plans  to 
take  up,  43;  note  on,  43;  allusion 
to,  72  ;  diarist  begins  perusal  of,  74  ; 
continues  reading,  84,  86,  89,  107; 
diarist  criticises  as  not  suitable  as  a 
text-book  for  young  students  of  the 
law,  107,  108. 

Colraan,  Col.  Daniel,  diarist  lodges  in 
house  of,  29. 

Commencement  at  Harvard  College, 
John  Adams  and  diarist  attend,  153; 
list  of  graduates  at,  class  of  1788,  155. 

Concord,  N.  II.,  town  of,  Federal  Con- 
stitutional Convention  adjourns  from 
Exeter  to,  101. 

Congregational  Church,  First,  of  New- 
buryport,  5  ;  observes  its  175th  an- 
niversary, 5;  John  Quincy  Adams 
once  a  member  of,  5  ;  alluded  to,  8. 

Constitution,  British,  allusion  to,  98. 

Constitution,  Federal,  convention  to 
frame,  9 ;  Symmes  opposes,  38  ; 
North  Andover's  opposition  to,  38; 
Parsons  favors,  46  ;  diarist  inclined 
to  oppose.  46;  Captain  Wyer  zeal- 
ous for,  46  ;  diarist  discusses  with 
Symmes,  48,  55 ;  Newburyport  elects 
delegates  to  State  convention  to  dis- 
cuss, 64 ;  Dr.  Kilham  opposes,  67 ; 
allusion  to,  69;  diarist  expresses  dis- 
approval of,  in  letter  to  his  mother, 
75;  Massachusetts  State  Convention 
meets  to  discuss,  81,  82;  news  of 
ratification  of,  by  Slassachusetts 
Convention,  reaches  Newburj'port, 
93;  diarist  comments  thereon,  93; 
Newburyport  celebrates  ratification 
of,  94 :  convention  to  discuss,  meets 
at  Exeter,  N.  H.,  100 ;  John  Adams 
favors,  106 ;  news  that  Virginia  has 
ratified,  reaches  Boston,  150. 

Convention,  Massachusetts  State,  to 
discuss  proposed  Federal  Constitu- 
tion, Newburyport  elects  delegates 
to,  64 ;  meets  in  Boston,  82 ;  John 
Hancock  chosen  president  of,  82; 
some  proceedings  of,  86,  88;  ratifies 
constitution,  93 ;  diarist  comments 
thereon,  93 ;  Newburyport  delegates 
to,  welcomed  home  with  acclaim,  94  ; 
Theophilus  Parsons  relates  incidents 


189 


of,  95,  96;  New  Hampshire  State, 
meets  at  Exeter,  100 ;  diarist  attends 
same,  100;  and  comments  tliereon, 
100 ;  adjourns  to  meet  at  Concord, 
101. 

Coombs,  Jane,  allusion  to,  and  note  on, 
137. 

Coombs,  Philip,  note  on,  97. 

Coombs,  Polly,  allusion  to,  130,  137 ; 
death  of,  1G2. 

Coombs,  Cupt.  William,  allusion  to,  73, 
97 ;  note  on,  97 ;  allusion  to,  108, 
130;  elected  representative  in  the 
General  Court,  132;  allusion  to,  137; 
death  of  daughter  of,  162. 

Coombs  Wharf,  97. 

Court  of  Common  Pleas,  sits  at  New- 
buryport,  37. 

Crancli,  Elizabeth  (Betsey),  diarist 
meets  at  Haverhill,  47  ;  note  on,  47  ; 
allusion  to,  128. 

Cranch,  Lucy,  visits  at  Cambridge, 
125;  note  on,  125. 

Cranch,  Richard,  allusion  to,  10 ;  note 
concerning,  11 ;  allusion  to,  54,  125, 
127,  145,  146,  156. 

Cranch,  Mrs.  Richard,  allusion  to,  21, 
22;  note  concerning,  22;  allusion  to, 
23,  55,  124. 

Cranch,  William,  biographical  note 
concerning,  21 ;  diarist's  characteriza- 
tion of,  21 ;  diarist  alludes  to,  23,  25, 
27,  33,  36,  37,  41,  44,  45,  46,  47,  49, 55, 
60,  81,  83,  85,  98,  125,  127,  138,  145, 
151,156,  168,  170. 

Cromwell's  Head  (Brackett's  Tavern), 
in  Boston,  148. 

Crook,  Mr.,  fellow  passenger  with  dia- 
rist on  voyage  to  New  York,  175. 

Cross,  Ralph,  allusion  to,  98.  .; 

"Crown  Law,  Discourses  upon  a  few 
Branches  of  the,"  Sir  Michael  Fos- 
ter's, diarist  reads,  131 ;  note  on,  131, 
132  ;  diarist  criticises,  133 ;  continues 
reading,  168. 

"  Crown,  Pleas  of  the,"  William  Haw- 
kins's, diarist  takes  up,  134;  note  on, 
1.34  ;  continues  reading,  136 ;  com- 
pletes reading,  140. 

Cullen,  Dr.  William,  John  B.  Svvett 
studies  surgery  with,  30;  surgeon  to 
Falkland  Islands,  30;  surgeon  in 
American  army  of  Revolution,  30. 

Curry,   Ross,   fellow    passenger    with 


diarist  on  voyage  to  New  York,  175  ; 

note  on,  175. 
Gushing,  Thomas,  death  of,  noted,  106. 
Gushing,  William,  justice  of  Supreme 

Court  of  Massachusetts,  29;  allusion 

to,  and  note  on,  5G. 
Gushman,    Joshua,    diarist    visits,    at 

Cambridge,  122,  note  on,  122. 
Gutter,   Samuel,   overturns    sleigli    on 

sleighing  party,  94 ;  note  on,  94 ,  al- 
lusion to,  98,  99 ;  characterization  of, 

109;  allusion  to.  111,  115,  116,  130, 

159,  163. 
Gutts,  Anna  Holyoke,  note  concerning, 

32. 
Cutts,  Charles,  disputant  at  Harvard, 

123 ;  note  on,  123. 
Gutts,  Edward,  marries  Mary  Garter, 

32. 
Cutts,  Eliza  Eppes,  diarist  alludes  to, 

32;  note  concerning,  32. 
Gutts,   Nancy,   diarist    contrasts    with 

her  sister  Eliza  Eppes,  32;  allusion 

to,  136,  137. 


Dalton,  Catherine,  note  on,  104;  allu- 
sion to,  135,  136. 

Dalton,  Mary,  note  on,  104;  allusion 
to,  135,  136. 

Dalton,  Ruth  Hooper,  allusion  to,  103 ; 
note  on,  104 ;  allusion  to,  135,  136. 

Dalton,  Sarah,  note  on,  104;  allusion 
to,  135,  136. 

Dalton,  Tristram,  diarist  alludes  to,  12; 
biographical  note  concerning,  12, 16  l 
allusion  to,  39,  46,  65,  94;  invites 
diarist  to  an  "  evening,"  102. 

Dalton,  Mrs.  Tristram,  allusion  to,  95. 

Dana,  Rev.  Daniel,  allusion  to,  97  ;  note 
on,  137. 

Dana,  Francis,  succeeded  as  chief  jus- 
tice by  Theophilus  Parsons,  5 ;  allu- 
sion to,  10 ;  note  concerning,  10 ;  dia- 
rist lodges  at  house  of,  56;  opens 
court  at  Cambridge,  56 ;  rupture  of, 
with  Elbridge  Gerry  in  Federal  Con- 
stitutional Convention,  8G;  diarist 
dines  with,  124,  128,  147,  148,  154.  - 

Dana,  Mrs.  Francis,  allusion  to,  7iote, 
147. 

Dana,  Francis  (Jr.),  allusion  to,  24. 


190 


INDEX. 


Danvers,  town  of,  allusion  to,  60,  160, 
165. 

Dartmouth  College,  diarist's  rasping 
characterization  of  students  at,  76, 
77 ;  diarist  again  records  his  con- 
tempt for,  110;  represented  at  meet- 
ing of  <&  B  K  at  Camhridge,  165. 

Dashwood,  Miss,  diarist  meets,  and 
characterizes,  85. 

Davenport,  Mrs.,  sister  of  T.  Parsons, 
death  of,  61. 

Davenport's  Tavern,  allusion  to,  109, 
110. 

Dawes,  Thomas,  allusion  to,  21 ;  bio- 
graphical note  concerning,  21 ;  allu- 
sion to,  25;  spectator  at  Shehane 
trial,  29;  his  comment  on,  29;  allu- 
sion to,  56,  60 ;  diarist  dines  at  house 
of,  156;  allusion  to,  161,170. 

Dawes,  i1//s.,  characterized,  156. 

Debluis,  Louis,  marries  Ruth  Hooper 
Dalton,  104. 

Deblois,  Miss,  allusion  to,  and  comment 
on,  135,  136. 

Dedham,  town  of,  allusion  to,  52. 

"Defense  of  the  American  Constitu- 
tions," by  John  Adams,  allusion  to, 
120. 

Derby,  Anstiss,  allusion  to,  and  char- 
acterization of,  97,  98;  allusion  to, 
104;  characterization  of,  105;  mar- 
ries Benjamin  Pickman,  Jr.,  121 ; 
note  on,  121. 

Derby,  Elias  H.,  note  on,  121 ;  allusion 
to,  and  note  on,  144. 

Derby,  Mrs.,  ball  of,  at  Hingham,  52, 
54. 

Derby,  Mis.,  second  wife  of  Judge  Ben- 
jamin Greenleaf,  7iote,  98. 

Diary,  of  J.  Q.  Adams,  extracts  from, 
read  at  Anniversary  at  Newburyport, 
5  ;  entitled  "  Ephemeris,"  by  its  au- 
thor, 5;  character  of,  5;  first  and 
last  entries  in,  6 ;  not  used  in  "  Me- 
moirs," by  C.  F.  Adams,  6 ;  its  ma- 
turity of  tone,  6;  gives  glimpses  of 
social  life  in  Massachusetts  seaport 
town,  6  ;  communicated  to  Massachu- 
setts Historical  Society,  8;  events 
contemporary  with  period  covered 
by,  9  ;  opens,  10. 

"  Discourses  upon  a  Few  Branches  of 
the  Crown  Law,"  Sir  Michael  Fos- 
ter's, diarist  reads,  131 ;  note  on,  131, 


132  ;  diarist  criticises,  133  ;  continues 
reading,  168. 

Discussion,  diarist  and  his  fellow  stu- 
dents engage  in  a,  36. 

Dobbyn,  Mr.,  allusion  to,  177. 

Doddridge,  Phihp,  works  of,  studied  at 
Harvard,  20,  21 ;  note  concerning, 
20,  21. 

Dodge,  Daniel,  suit  of,  with  William 
Bartlett,  39,  40. 

Dodge,  Mr.,  of  Haverhill,  allusion  to, 
17. 

Dodge,  Oliver,  class  of  1788,  Harvard, 
poem  by,  at  Commencement,  154  ;  in 
list  of  graduates,  1788,  165. 

Dreams,  comment  on,  23. 

Dudleian  lecture,  delivered  by  Rer. 
Simeon  Howard,  28. 

Dudley,  Gov.  Thomas,  allusion  to,  35. 

Dummer  Academy,  allusion  to,  14; 
Isaac  Smith  preceptor  at,  20 ;  Sam- 
uel Moody  preceptor  at,  76  ;  allusion 
to,  104. 

Dunbar,  dipt.,  fellow  traveller  with 
diarist  on  voj^age  to  New  York,  175. 

Duncan,  Elizabeth,  marries  John  Thax- 
ter,  17;  allusion  to,  51,  66. 

Duncan,  James,  allusion  to,  17,  51. 

Duncan,  James  (Jr.),  invites  diarist  to 
dine,  47  ;  note  on,  47  ;  allusion  to, 
48,  66,  121. 

Dunstable,  town  of,  142. 


Eames,  Deacon,  allusion  to,  63. 
Eaton,  Peter,  classmate  of  diarist,  13; 

biographical  note  concerning,  13,  16. 
Edwards,  Mrs.,  allusion  to,   and   note 

on,  144,  145. 
"  Elements  of  Common  Law,  The,"  Sir 

Francis  Bacon's,  127. 
Ellery,   Almy,   daughter    of    William, 

allusion  to,  124,  172. 
Ellery,  Benjamin,  allusion  to,  and  note 

on,  147. 
Ellery,  Lucy,  allusion  to,  note,  147,  174. 
Ellery,  William,  allusion  to,  note,  147 ; 

diarist  visits,  at  Newport,  172 ;  allu- 
sion to,  174. 
Emerson,  Rev.  Joseph,  allusion  to,  28. 
Emerson,  Ralph  Waldo,  allusion  to,  28. 
Emerson,  Rev.  William,  part  of,  at  Com- 


191 


mencement,  28 ;  biographical  note 
concerning,  28. 

Emery,  Hannah  Tracy,  diarist  meets 
and  comments  concerning,  45;  bio- 
graphical note  on,  45  ;  diarist  visits, 
77,  83,  85,100;  diarist  drives  to  Exe- 
ter with,  100;  note  on,  124;  allusion 
to,  140  ;  note  on,  1G2. 

Emery,  John,  allusion  to,  45. 

Emery,  Mrs.  Margaret  Gookin,  allusion 
to,  and  note  on,  83 ;  allusion  to,  85, 
100,105,  120,  130, 139, 141, 142 ;  death 
of,  162 ;  note  on,  162 ;  funeral  of,  163. 

Emery,  Noah,  allusion  to,  45. 

Emery,  Robert,  note  on,  162. 

Emerj,  Rufus,  allusion  to,  45. 

England,  treaty  of,  with  Holland,  note 
on,  34. 

"Ephemeris,"  title  given  to  Adams's 
diary,  5. 

"Essex  Junto,"  Jonathan  Greenleaf  a 
member  of,  132. 

Everett,  Edward,  allusion  to,  169. 

Everett,  liev.  Oliver,  allusion  to,  168. 

Exeter,  N.  H.,  town  of,  allusion  to,  37  ; 
diarist  attends  Federal  Constitu- 
tional Convention  at,  100. 

E.xpatriation,  right  of,  diarist  quotes 
from  Blackstone  concerning,  and  dis- 
cusses, 42,  43. 


F. 


Earnham,  Daniel,  allusion  to,  104,  130. 

Farnliam,  Sibyl,  allusion  to,  104. 

Earnham,  William,  allusion  to,  and 
note  on,  108;  diarist  characterizes, 
108;  allusion  to,  120,  130,  131,  135, 
136,  140,  142,  159. 

Farris,  Capt.  William,  allusion  to,  and 
note  on,  83. 

Fay,  Mr.,  musician  at  Cambridge,  124. 

Fiske,  Rer.  Nathan,  allusion  to,  99. 

Fiske,  Oliver,  allusion  to,  and  note 
on,  99. 

Fiske,  Rev.  Thaddeus,  allusion  to,  27  ; 
allusion  to,  and  note  on,  127. 

Flagg,  i[r.,  fellow-passenger  with  diarist 
on  voyage  to  New  York,  175. 

Fleet,  John,  of  first  graduates  in  medi- 
cine at  Harvard  College,  1788,  154. 

Fletcher,  John,  allusion  to,  65 ;  note 
on,  65;  allusion  to,  85,  96,  159. 


Fletcher,  Lucy,  allusion  to,  and  note  on, 
85 ;  diarist  dances  with,  87 ;  and 
characterizes,  87  ;  allusion  to,  162 ; 
marries  William  Araory,  170. 

Flint,  Mr.,  of  Lincoln,  allusion  to,  66. 

Forbes,  James  Grant,  allusion  to,  and 
note  on,  58,  59,  60. 

Forbes,  John  Murray,  diarist  alludes  to, 
10;  note  concerning,  10;  allusion 
to,  23 ;  writes  to  Miss  Jones,  33 ; 
allusion  to,  46,  58  ;  extended  note  on, 
68,  59 ;  diarist's  characterization  of, 
59;  letter  from,  concerumg  Federal 
Constitutional  Convention  in  Massa- 
chusetts, 86 ;  diarist  meets,  at  Cam- 
bridge, 155. 

Foster,  Bossenger,  allusion  to,  23,  25, 
5G. 

Foster,  Bossenger  (Jr.),  allusion  to, 
53;  note  on,  53;  diarist's  cliaracter- 
ization  of,  53;  allusion  to,  l:i4,  167. 

Foster's  (Sir  Michael)  "Discourses 
upon  a  Few  Branches  of  the  Crown 
Law,"  diarist  reads,  131 ;  note  on, 
181 ;  allusion  to,  133 ;  diarist  criti- 
cises, 183  ;  continues  reading,  168. 

Fowle,  Robert,  classmate  of  Thomas 
W.  Thompson,  allusion  to,  130; 
note  on,  130. 

Franklin,  Benjamin,  J.  Q.  Adams 
makes  acquaintance  of,  7. 

Frazier,  Mary,  diarist  dances  with,  87; 
said  to  have  become  enamoured  of, 
169;  rumor  of  marriage  engagement 
with,  169. 

Frazier,  Moses,  allusion  to,  and  note 
on,  78,  90;  allusion  to,  130,  135,  188, 
163, 165 ;  diarist  becomes  intimate  in 
family  of,  169. 

Frazier,  the  Misses,  allusion  to,  135; 
comment  upon,  168. 

Freeman,  Nathaniel,  diarist  visits,  19; 
orator  before  *  B  K,  26,  27 ;  extended 
note  concerning,  26 ;  allusion  to,  27, 
51,  80,  85. 

Freeman,  Goi.  Nathaniel,  visits  New- 
buryport,  35;  note  on,  35. 

Free  Masons,  Society  of,  observe  St. 
John's  Dny,  75. 

French  Consul,  at  meeting  of  $  B  K, 
at  Cambridge,  166 ;  compliments  dia- 
rist, the  orator  of  the  day,  166 ;  dines 
with  John  Adams,  166. 

French,  Mr.,  allusion  to,  167. 


192 


INDEX. 


French  fleet,  sails  for  Brest,  34. 
French  officers,  visit  Harvard  College, 

21 ;    met  by  diarist  while  gunning, 

23;  visit  Harvard,  24  ;  at  meeting  of 

*  B  K,  at  Cambridge,  1G6. 
French   squadron  in   Boston   Harbor, 

166. 


G. 

Game  laws,  comment  upon,  23. 

Gannett,  Caleb,  allusion  to,  52;  diarist 
visits,  and  note  on,  125;  allusion  to, 
147. 

Gardner,  James,  college  friend  of  dia- 
rist, 123;  Greek  conference  by,  at 
Harvard  Commencement,  1788,  154; 
in  list  of  graduates,  155. 

Gardiner,  John,  allusion  to,  25;  note 
concerning,  25. 

Gartz,  Mr.,  of  Baltimore,  allusion  to, 
116. 

George  III.,  allusion  to,  8. 

Gerry,  Elbridge,  opposes  adoption  of 
Federal  Constitution,  86;  rupture  of, 
•with  Dana,  86;  John  Adams  visits, 
147,  148 ;  in  National  House  of  Rep- 
resentatives, 177. 

Gibbon's  "  Decline  and  Fall  of  the  Eo- 
man  Empire,"  diarist  begins  perusal 
of,  65;  and  comments  upon,  65;  allu- 
sion to,  6  ;  diarist  criticises,  70 ;  con- 
tinues reading,  82,  84,  8G,  88,  80,  106, 
107 ;  diarist  completes  perusal  of, 
112;  and  comments  thereon,  112; 
alludes  to  new  volumes  of,  and  note 
on,  146;  continues  reading,  168. 

Gilbert's  [Sir  Geoffrey)  "Treatise  on 
Evidence,"  diarist  reads,  127;  note 
on,  127. 

Gilman,  John  Taylor,  allusion  to,  68. 

Goldsmith's  (Oliver)  "  Tiie  Citizen  of 
the  World ;  or.  Letters  of  a  Chinese 
Philosopher,"  diarist  reads,  86. 

Goldthwait,  Mr.,  fellow  traveller  with 
diarist  between  Providence  and  New- 
port, 172;  diarist  visits  at  Newport, 
173,  174. 

Gookin,  Rev.  Nathaniel,  allusion  to, 
83. 

Gordon,  Adam,  disputant  at  Harvard 
Commencement,  1788, 154;  in  list  of 
graduates,  155. 


Gorham,  Nathaniel,  member  of  Federal 
Constitutional  Convention,  allusion 
to,  86. 

Gray,  ,  disputant  at  Harvard  Ex- 
hibition, 146. 

Green,  Benjamin,  allusion  to,  27;  bio- 
graphical note  concerning,  27. 

Greenleaf,  Judge  Benjamin,  allusion  to, 
34,  37  ;  note  on,  37 ;  elected  delegate 
to  Massachusetts  Constitutional  Con- 
vention, 61 ;  allusicm  to,  94,  97  ;  note 
on,  98;  allusion  to,  105;  daughters 
of,  118;  dines  with,  135;  daughters 
of,  139;  allusion  to,  140;  discourse 
of,  upon  Disappointment,  140;  musi- 
cal party  at  house  of,  164 ;  allusion 
to,  165. 

Greenleaf,  Mrs.  Benjamin,  allusion  to, 
98. 

Greenleaf,  Ebenezer,  note,  137. 

Greenleaf,  Hannah,  diarist  attends  ball 
in  company  with,  96 ;  allusion  to,  98, 
104,  136. 

Greenleaf,  Jane,  allusion  to,  98,  104. 

Greenleaf,  John,  allusion  to,  and  note 
on,  94,  103;  note  on,  125;  allusion 
to,  130,  141. 

Greenleaf,  Jonathan,  allusion  to,  73;  is 
elected  representative  to  the  General 
Court,  132  ;  note  on,  1.32. 

Greenleaf,  Mary,  allusion  to,  98,  104, 
136. 

Greenleaf,  Miss  P.,  allusion  to,  48. 

Greenleaf,  Sarah,  allusion  to,  98,  104, 
136. 

Greenleaf,  William,  note  on,  125. 

Greenleaf,  Rev.  William  Coombs,  note, 
137. 

Greenough,  Mr.,  joins  a  serenading 
party,  137 ;  allusion  to,  164. 

Gregory,  Mr.,  of  Boston,  suitor  of  Lucy 
Knight,  114. 

Grosvenor, ,  college  friend  of  dia- 
rist, 122. 

Groton,  Mass.,  town  of,  allusion  to,  50. 

Guild,  Mr.,  allusion  to,  150. 


H. 

Halifax,  allusion  to,  166. 

Hall,  George  Holmes,  of  first  gradu- 
ates in  medicine  at  Harvard  College, 
1788,  154. 


INDEX. 


193 


Ilancock,  John,  governor  of  Massa- 
chusetts, 9;  allusion  to,  27;  leniency 
of,  toward  participants  in  Shays's 
Rebellion,  33;  candidate  for  re-elec- 
tion, lit),  120;  at  Exhibition  at  Har- 
vard College,  124;  address  of,  at 
Harvard  Commencement,  1788,  155; 
visits  Newburyport,  1G3;  reviews 
troops  and  proceeds  to  Haverhill, 
164;  at  meeting  of  *  B  K,  165,  166; 
dines  with  John  Adams  at  Braintree 
in  company  with  officers  of  French 
squadron,  106. 
Harris,  Thaddeus  Mason,  allusion  to, 

and  note  on,  128,  129,  154. 
Harris,  Rev.  William,  allusion  to,  24 ; 
elected  vice-president  of  4>  B  K,  20; 
note  concerning,   126;    allusion   to, 
27. 

Harris, ,  butler  at  Harvard  College, 

124. 
Harvard  College,  J.  Q.  Adams  a  stu- 
dent at,  7 ;  regard  of  latter  for,  7 ; 
Adams  graduates  at,  7  ;   Commence- 
ment at  1788,  John  Adams  attends, 
with  his  son,  153;    Commencement 
exercises  at   1788,  154;   first  gradu- 
ates   of,  in    medicine,    154;    list   of 
graduates  of,  class  of  1788, 155;  peti- 
tion for  private  Commencement  at, 
by  class  of  1787,  note,  155. 
Hastings,  Warren,  allusion  to,  9. 
Hatch's  Tavern,  Boston,  171 ;  note  on, 

171. 
Haven,   Bev.   Jason,   at   ordination    of 

Rev.  Henry  Ware,  52 ;  note  on,  52. 
Haverhill,  town  of,  diarist  alludes  to, 
11;  diarist  visits,  11-18;  alluded  to, 
84;  diarist  visits,  47;  allusion  to,  48; 
diarist  visits,  63;  Thanksgiving  Day 
at,  60;  allusion  to,  87,  88,  91,  121; 
Gov.  Hancock  visits,  164. 
Hay,  Mrs.,  allusion  to,  104,  108. 
Hawkins's    (William),   "Pleas   of  the 
Crown,"  diarist  takes  up,  134;  note 
on,    134;     continues    reading,    136; 
completes  reading,  140. 
Hazen,  Miss,  of  Salem,  diarist  alludes 

to,  12,  129. 
Hell-Gate,   diarist   passes  en  route  to 

New  York,  175. 
Hichborn,  Mr.,  allusion  to,  143. 
Higginson,    Cul    T.    W.,  allusion   to, 
34. 


Hill,  William,   graduate    of   Harvard 

College,  1788,  155. 
Hilliard,  Rev.  Timothy,  diarist  alludes 
to,  23;  biographical  note  concerning, 
23 ;  preaches  at  ordination  of  Henry 
Ware,  51 ;  note  on,  51. 
Hingham,  town  of,  Rev.  Henry  Ware 
pastor  at,  19;  allusion  to,  20;  diarist 
visits,  51;   Mr.  Ware  ordained  and 
settled  at,  51 ;  allusion  to,  52,  1S9. 
Hitchcock,  Rev.  Gad,  at  ordination  of 

Henry  Ware,  52  ;  note  on,  52. 
Hodge,  Michael,  allusion  to,  and  note 

on,  98. 
Hodge,  Mrs.,  allusion  to,  140. 
Holland,  crisis  of  aflairs  in,  34 ;  treaty 

of,  with  England,  note  on,  34. 
Holyoke,   Dr.   Edward   A.,  of   Salem, 

allusion  to,  53. 
Homan's  Tavern,  at  Ipswich,   diarist 

dines  at,  60. 
Hooper,  Benjamin,  diarist  alludes  to, 

65;  suicide  of,  89,  90. 
Hooper,  Elizabeth    (Betsey),  allusion 

to,  160. 
Plooper,  Joseph,  allusion  to,  158,  161. 
Hooper,  Mrs.,  diarist  visits,  65,  77,  81 ; 
distressed  at  suicide  of  her  son.  89, 
90;    circumstances   of,    90;    diarist 
visits,  95,  98,  99,  100,  109,  110,  111, 
112,  114,  116,  120,  131,  136,  138,  139, 
140,  142,  143,  158,  100,  167. 
Hooper,  Rebecca,  allusion  to,  95. 
Hooper,  Robert,  allusion  to,  95,  103. 
Hooper,   Stephen,  allusion  to,  39,  83, 
91,  95,   103;   note  on,  103;  allusion 
to,  107,  131,  103. 
Hooper,  Thomas   W.,  note   on,    107; 

allusion  to,  124,  170. 
Hopkins,  Dr.  Samuel,  allusion  to,  63, 

105. 
"Hopkinsian  sect,"  allusion  to,  105. 
Hopkinson,  "  a  distracted  fellow,"  Dr. 
Kilham  annoyed  by,  at  Exeter,  N.  H., 
101. 
Hopkinton,  N.  77.,  town  of,  53. 
Horace,  diarist   quotes   from   De  Arte 

Poetica  of,  50. 
House  of  Representatives  (National), 

diarist  visits,  177. 
Hovey,   Rev.   Horace   C,  allusion    to, 

97;   note,  137. 
Howard,   Rev.   Simeon,   delivers  Dud- 
leian  lecture,  28 ;  note  concerning,  28. 


13 


194 


INDEX. 


Howe,  Mr.,  allusion  to,  51. 

"  Hudibras,"   Butler's,    diarist    reads, 

121;  allusion  to,  161. 
Hull,  Gen.  William,  speaks  before  the 

Cincinnati,  in  the  Old  Brick  Church, 

150;  note  on,  150. 
Hume's  "  History  of  England,"  diarist 

reads,  133,  160. 
Hard,  I).,  note  concerning,  27. 
Hurricane,  violent,  visits  central  New 

England  towns,  16. 
Hutchinson,  Mr.,  from  Ireland,  allusion 

to,  94,  96, 102  ;  sails  for  Ireland,  104. 


Infants,  diarist's  opinion  of,  18 
Insomnia,  diarist  is  troubled  witli,  167, 

im. 

"  Institutes  of  Justinian,"  diarist  reads, 
168. 

"  Institutes  of  the  Laws  of  England," 
Thomas  Wood's,  allusion  to,  140. 

Ipswicii,  town  of,  diarist  dines  at,  en 
route  to  Newburyport,  30 ;  alhision  to, 
40  ;  diarist  passes  through,  60  ;  allu- 
sion to,  109,  114,  115,  117,118,  143; 
diarist  passes  through,  on  journey 
to  Boston  to  meet  his  father,  143, 
144  ;  allusion  to,  162,  167. 


Jackson,  Charles,  Greek  conference  by, 
at  Harvard  Commencement,  1788, 
154;  in  list  of  graduates,  155. 

Jackson,  Edward,  allusion  to,  83. 

Jackson,  Representative  James,  allusion 
to,  177. 

Jackson,  Jonathan,  allusion  to,  65,  83, 
90,  136,  139,  1G8 ;  note  on,  83. 

Jackson,  Mrs.  Jonathan,  diarist  visits, 
and  characterizes,  85,  98. 

Jackson,  Patrick  Tracy,  allusion  to,  39. 

James,  Eleazar,  allusion  to,  and  note 
on,  20. 

Jefferson,  Thomas,  J.  Q.  Adams  makes 
acquaintance  of,  7  ;  latter's  admira- 
tion for,  7 ;  "  Notes  "  of,  upon  Vir- 
ginia, allusion  to,  23;  note  concerning, 
23;  visit  of,  to  Nathaniel  Tracy,  111. 

Jenkins,  Fanny,  allusion  to,  102  ;  char- 
acterization of,  108;  allusion  to,  137. 


Jenkins,  Lewis,  allusion  to,  and  note 
on,  95. 

Jenkins,  Nancy,  diarist  dances  with, 
96 ;  and  characterizes,  96 ;  allusion 
to,  97  ;  characterization  of,  108,  109 ; 
allusion  to,  130. 

Jenkins,  Sally,  diarist  meets  socially, 
and  characterizes,  80;  allusion  to, 
94,  104  ;  marries  W.  W.  Prout,  142. 

Jennison,  Timothy  Lindall,  allusion  to, 
and  note  on,  20. 

Jones,  John  Coffin,  allusion  to,  39. 

Jones,  Miss,  diarist  visits,  15,  16  ;  re- 
ceives letter  from  Forbes,  33 ;  diarist 
offers  services  to,  as  escort  to  a  ball, 
46 ;  visits,  61 ;  allusion  to,  125,  159, 
162. 

Jones,  Mr.,  of  Boston,  allusion  to,  103. 

Jones,  Mrs.,  of  Boston,  diarist  meets, 
102  ;  and  characterizes,  103. 

Joppe,  fishing  hamlet  near  Newbury- 
port, 141  ;  note  on,  141. 

"Junius's  Letters,"  diarist  peruses,  70, 
159. 

"  Justinian,  Institutes  of,"  diarist  reads, 
168. 


K. 


Kellogg,  Rev.  Elijah,  allusion  to,  and 
note  on,  137. 

Kellogg,  Samuel,  college  friend  of  dia- 
rist, allusion  to,  and  note  on,  123. 

Kendall,  Ephraim,  allusion  to,  and  note 
on,  143. 

Kendall,  Samuel,  allusion  to,  27 ;  note 
concerning,  27. 

Kent,  Abigail,  marries  Thomas  Welsh, 
25. 

Kilham,  Dr.  Daniel,  of  Newburyport, 
diarist  dines  with,  32 ;  biographical 
notice  of,  32  ;  loans  music  to  diarist, 
34;  allusion  to,  44,  45,  46,  47,  5-5,  67 ; 
opposes  Federal  Constitution,  67  and 
note;  allusion  to,  69,  71,  74,  76,  77, 
80,  82,  90;  drives  to  Exeter.  100; 
allusion  to,  101 ;  opposed  to  Federal 
Constitution,  105,  106  ;  note  on,  105 ; 
allusion  to,  110,  118,  140, 157. 

Kimball,  Jacob,  unable  to  obtain  his 
degree  at  Harvard  College,  1788, 156. 

Kimball,  Rev.  True,  preaches  at  Haver- 
hill, 17;  biographical  note  concern- 
ing,  17  ;    diarist's  criticism    of,    17 ; 


INDEX. 


195 


preaches  at  Newbury  port,  34  ;  diarist 
liears  an  old  sermon  by,  34,  IGl. 

King,  Rufus,  allusion  to,  as  student 
witli  Tlieophilus  Parsons,  14  ;  elected 
delegate  to  Mass.  Federal  Constitu- 
tional Convention,  64;  note  on,  64; 
allusion  to,  10,  86. 

Kirkland,  Rev.  John  Thornton,  D.D., 
diarist  meets  at  Braiutree,  51 ;  bio- 
graphical note  on,  51 ;  pronounces 
Latin  oration  at  Harvard,  146. 

Kissing,  diarist's  sentiments  concern- 
ing, 78,  79. 

Kittredge,  Dr.  Thomas,  of  Andover, 
diarist  visits,  122;  note  on,  122. 

Kittredge,  Mrs.  Dr.,  allusion  to,  122. 

Knight,  Lucy,  allusion  to,  95;  diarist 
characterizes,  95;  allusion  to,  97,  98, 
100,  114;  diarist  criticises,  115. 

Knox,  Vicessimus,  reference  to,  and 
note  on  his  criticism  of  Gibbon's 
"  Decline  and  Fall  of  the  Roman 
Empire,"  113;  the  "Liberal  Educa- 
tion" of,  115. 


La  Luzerne,  Chevalier  de,  comes  to 
United  States  in  company  with  the 
Adamses,  6. 

Langdon,  John,  a  delegate  to  New 
Hampshire  Federal  Convention,  101 ; 
note  on,  101. 

Lanman,  James,  fellow  traveller  with 
diarist  to  Providence,  171 ;  note  on, 
171  ;  allusion  to,  172,  173,  174. 

Laughton,  Margaret,  marries  John 
Tracy,  35  ;  note  on,  35. 

Lawyers,  public  antipathy  to,  57 ;  ex- 
tended note  on,  57,  58  ;  diarist  writes 
his  mother  concerning,  73. 

Learned,  Ebenezer,  allusion  to,  53 ; 
note  on,  53;  diarist's  cliaracteriza- 
tion  of,  53;  allusion  to,  144,  167. 

Leathers,  Mrs.,  of  Newhuryport,  16 ; 
diarist  takes  rooms  with,  30,  32 ; 
allusion  to,  and  characterization  of, 
74 ;  diarist  leaves  lodgings  of,  165. 

Lee,  Henry,  Representative  in  Congress, 
allusion  to,  177. 

Lee,  Mary,  marries  Nathaniel  Trac}', 
note  on,  111. 

Lee,  Mr.,  diarist  alludes  to,  18. 

Leonard,    Dr.,    passenger    with    John 


Adams  from  Europe,  151  ;  visits 
latter  at  Braintree,  151;  imprisoned 
in  England  for  planning  to  ship 
machinery  to  America,  151 ;  visits  at 
Braintree,  151,  152. 

"Leopard,"  Providence  and  Newport 
packet,  172. 

L'Etombe,  Le  Sieur  de,  French  con- 
sul, present  at  $  B  K  meeting  at 
Cambridge,  166;  compliments  diar- 
ist, the  orator,  166;  note  on,  166. 

"  Letters  of  a  Chinese  Philosopher,"  by 
Goldsmith,  diarist  reads,  86. 

Leyden,  University  of,  J.  Q.  Adams  a 
student  at,  7;   latter's  regard  for,  7. 

"Liberal  Education,"  of  Vicessimus 
Knox,  diarist  reads  and  comments 
thereon,  115. 

Lincoln,  Abner,  college  classmate  of 
diarist,  20 ;  allusion  to,  24  ;  biograph- 
ical note  concerning,  24 ;  disputant 
at  Harvard  Commencement,  1788, 
154;  in  list  of  graduates,  1788,  155. 

Lincoln,  Gen.  Benjamin,  allusion  to, 
24,  52 ;  mill  of,  at  Hingham,  54 ; 
allusion  to,  83  ;  candidate  for  lieu- 
tenant-governor, 119,  120;  elected 
lieutenant-governor,  140. 

Lincoln,  Benjamin  (Jr.),  death  of,  re- 
corded, 86;  note  on,  86. 

Lincoln,  Rev.  Henry,  allusion,  comment 
and  note  on,  163  ;  allusion  to,  167. 

Lincoln,  town  of,  allusion  to,  55,  66. 

Lithgow,  Gen.  William,  allusion  to, 
note,  149. 

Little,  George,  descendants  of,  note  on, 
104. 

Little,  George  T.,  allusion  to,  15. 

Little,  Moses,  classmate  of  diarist,  15; 
biographical  note  on,  15 ;  diarist's 
characterization  of,  15;  pathetic  epi- 
taph of,  15 ;  allusion  to,  80,  34,  35, 
36,  40,  41,  42,  44,  46,  47,  61,  62,  63, 
67,  71,  72,  76,  79,  80;  is  offered 
"subject"  by  sexton,  81 ;  allusion 
to,  82,  84,  88,  93,  96,  102,  109,  114, 
115,  130;  is  inoculated  for  smallpox, 
1.32  ;   allusion  to,  135,  155,  157,  163. 

Little,  Richard,  allusion  to,  15. 

Lloyd,  James,  allusion  to,  note,  149. 

Louis  XVI.,  allusion  to,  7. 

Lowell,  John,  orator  before  <!>  B  K,  26, 
27;  diarist  characterizes  same,  27; 
note  concerning,  27 


196 


Lowell,  Jud(jr.  Jolin,  allusion  to,  27 ; 
builder  of  inansiou  at  Newburyport, 
31  ;  allusion  to,  34,  83. 

Lowell,  Ri'v.  Joliu,  pastor  at  Newbury- 
port, 34. 


M. 


Madison,  James,  Representative  in  Con- 
gress, allusion  to,  177. 

Maiden  bridge,  allusion  to,  60. 

Marblehead,  town  of,  allusion  to,  27, 
111. 

Marbois,  M.,  comes  to  the  United 
States  m  company  with  the  Adamses, 

6  ;  pleased  with  young  J.  Q.  Adams, 
6;  the  latter  teaches  him  English,  6; 
lauds  the  young  man's  attainments, 

7  ;  anecdote  of,  6,  7. 

Marchant,  Henry,  diarist  visits  at  New- 
port, and  note  on,  172,  173,  174. 

Marine  Society  of  Newburyport,  Capt. 
Hodge  a  founder  of,  98. 

Marquand,  Joseph,  allusion  to,  112. 

Marquand,  Mrs.  Joseph,  allusion  to, 
102  ;  note  on,  102 ;  allusion  to,  103, 
157. 

Marsh,  Capt.,  allusion  to,  63. 

Marsh,  Jonathan,  elected  representa- 
tive in  the  General  Court,  132 ;  note 
on  132. 

Martegucs,  Chevalier  Maccarty  de, dines 
with  John  Adams  at  Braintree,  16G. 

Massachusetts  Historical  Society,  diary 
of  J.  Q.  Adams  communicated  to,  8; 
reproduces  diary  in  Proceedings,  8; 
James  Winthrop  one  of  the  founders 
of,  19. 

Mathematics  at  Harvard,  comment 
concerning,  21. 

McHard,  Mr.,  allusion  to,  92. 

Mclntier,   ,    prosecutes    case    for 

slander,  35. 

McKeen,  Rev.  Joseph,  preaches  at  New- 
buryport 136 ;  note  on,  136. 

McKinstry,  Sarah,  diarist  meets,  48; 
note  on,  48. 

McKinstry,  Dr.  William,  allusion  to,  48. 

McPherson,  Capt.,  of  Philadelphia,  176. 

Mead,  Samuel,  college  friend  of  diarist, 
allusion  to  and  characterization  of, 
in  note  on,  123. 

Medford,  town  of,  diarist  alludes  to 
11.  44,  51,  53. 


Medway,  town  of,  allusion  to,  27. 

Menotomy,  parish  of,  allusion  to,  127. 

Mercer,  Judge  James,  allusion  to,  35. 

Merrill,  Mr.,  of  Newburyport,  allusion 
to,  102. 

Meyer,  J/r.,  diarist  meets  at  Newport, 
173,  174. 

Milton,  John,  the  poet,  allusion  to,  173. 

Milton,  town  of,  allusion  to,  128,  150, 
151. 

Moody,  Samuel,  allusion  to,  and  note 
on,  70;  pays  visit  to  diarist,  85. 

Morland,  Mr.,  allusion  to,  115. 

Morris,  Kobert,  allusion  to,  note,  177. 

Morris,  Thomas,  dines  with  John 
Adams,  177. 

Murray,  Rev.  John,  pastor  at  Newbury- 
port, 40;  interesting  suit  of,  against 
inhabitants  of  Salisbury,  40,  41 ;  note 
concerning  sanie,  40,  41 ;  diarist  crit- 
icises sermon  of,  73;  note  on,  73; 
qiieer  antic  of  clock  on  meeting- 
house of,  81;  allusion  to,  118;  char- 
acterization of,  118 ;  allusion  to, 
7iote,  137,  158. 

Murray,  Rev.  John  (of  Gloucester), 
allusion  to,  1G8. 

Mystic,  town  of,  diarist  passes  through, 
19. 

N. 

Napoleon  Bonaparte,  allusion  to,  9. 

Newbury  Bridge,  allusion  to,  and  note 
on,  138. 

Newburyport,  First  Congregational 
Church  of,  observes  its  175tli  aimi- 
versary,  5;  its  conditition  in  the 
eighteenth  century,  7;  people  of,  7 ; 
allusion  to,  24,  2.5,  28;  diarist  enters 
law  office  in,  30 ;  citizens  of,  cele- 
brate ratification  of  Federal  Constitu- 
tion, 94 ;  Gov.  Hancock  visits,  163, 
and  reviews  troops  at,  164;  diarist 
returns  to,  167. 

Newell.  Miss,  allusion  to,  139. 

Newell's  [Newhall's]  Tavern,  Lynn, 
diarist  breakfasts  at,  129. 

Newhall,  Miss,  allusion  to,  157. 

Newhall's  Tavern,  see  Newell's  Tavern. 

New  London,  Conn.,  town  of,  173. 

Newport,  R.  I.,  diarist  visits  en  route  to 
New  York,  172;  describes  and  com- 
ments on,  174. 


INDEX. 


197 


New  York,  temporary  seat  of  United 
States  government,  John  Adams  re- 
moves to,  169;  diarist  makes  journey 
to,  and  visits  at,  170-178;  harbor  of, 
and  approacli  to,  described,  176;  dia- 
rist arrives  at,  176. 

Nisi  Prius,  Buller's,  diarist  reads,  169. 

North  American  Review,  extracts  from 
J.  Q.  Adams's  diary  published  in,  8. 

North  Andover,  town  of,  opposes  adop- 
tion of  Federal  Constitution,  88. 

North  School,  Newburyport,  note  con- 
cerning, 31. 

Norton,  Rev.  Jacob,  marries  Elizabeth 
Cranch,  note,  47 ;  allusion  to,  and 
note  on,  127;  diarist  characterizes, 
128  ;  allusion  to,  128. 

Norton,  house  of  Mr.,  former  home  of 
diarist's  grandfather  at  Weymouth, 
diarist  visits   146. 

Noyes,  Capt.,  allusion  to,  81. 


o. 


"Observations  on  the  Statutes,"  Bar- 

rington's,  diarist  reads,  169. 
Odiorne,  George,  is  married  to  Dorothy 

Tufts,  43;  note  on,  48;  allusion  to, 

126. 
"Old   Brick"  Church,   Gen.   William 

Hull  speaks  in,  before  the  Cincinnati, 

150. 
Old   South   Meeting   House,  Harrison 

Gray  Otis  speaks  in,  148. 
Oliphant,   Dr.,   fellow  passenger  with 

diarist  on  voyage  to  New  York,  174, 

175. 
Oliver,  Rev.  Daniel,  preaches  at  New- 
buryport,  110;    diarist  not  pleased 

with,  110;  note  on,  110. 
Orne,  Azor,  allusion  to,  110. 
Osgood,  Peter,  allusion  to,  38. 
Otis,    Harrison   Gray,  allusion  to,  25 ; 

speaks  in  Old  South  Meeting  House, 

148. 
Otis,  James,  allusion  to,  25. 
Otis,  Samuel  Allyne,  allusion  to,  25. 


Packard,  Rei\  Asa,  marries  Mrs.  Ann 
Quincy,  22 ;    note   concerning,   22 ; 


elected  a  member  of  *  B  K,  27,  28 ; 
biographical  note  concerning,  28. 

Packard,  Hezekiah,  diarist  alludes  to, 
20 ;  biographical  note  concerning,  20 ; 
allusion  to,  22,  23,  25,  27,  28.  35,  56, 
122,  128. 

Packet,  between  Boston  and  Hingham, 
54 ;  between  Providence  and  New- 
port (Leopard),  172;  between  New- 
port and  New  York  (Rambler),  172. 

Paine,  Joshua,  biographical  note  con- 
cerning, 25. 

Paine,  Robert,  takes  part  in  a  Greek 
dialogue  at  Cambridge,  124. 

Paine,  Robert  Treat,  attorney-general 
of  Massachusetts,  28;  prosecutor  in 
Shehane  trial,  28;  note  concerning, 
28. 

Palmer,  Rev.  Joseph,  allusion  to,  note, 
146. 

Palmer,  Stephen,  part  of,  at  Harvard 
Exhibition,  and  note  on,  146. 

Parish,  Rev.  Elijah,  ordination  of,  at 
Byfield,  allusion  to,  and  note  on,  71  ; 
as  student  at  Dartmouth  College, 
characterization  of,  76. 

Parker,  Mr.,  duies  with  diarist  at  Ha- 
verhill on  Thanksgiving  Day,  66; 
diarist  comments  on  wife  of,  66. 

Parker  River  (Newbury  Bridge),  allu- 
sion to,  and  note  on,  138. 

Parsons,  Theophilus,  J.  Q.  Adams  a 
student  in  office  of,  5 ;  succeeds  Fran- 
cis Dana  as  t'hief  Justice  of  Supreme 
Court,  5;  note  concerning,  10;  diarist 
alludes  to,  14  ;  biographical  note  con- 
cerning, 14;  diarist  enters  office  of, 
30 ;  arrives  from  Boston,  33 ;  allusion 
to,  34,  .35, 37,  38.  41,  42,  46,  49,  60,  61, 
63;  elected  delegate  to  Massachu- 
setts Federal  Convention,  64;  diarist 
lauds,  66 ;  diarist  plays  draughts 
with,  68,  71;  allusion  to,  72,  73,  81, 
82,  94,  95,  96,  98,  100,  102,  105,  106, 
110,  111,  112,  114,  115,  118,  120,  122, 
127;  elected  representative  to  the 
General  Court,  132;  allusion  to,  13.3, 
134,  138,  141,  149,  160,  166,  167,  169. 

Parsons,  Mrs.  Theophilus,  allusion  to, 
140. 

Parsons,  William,  allusion  to,  and 
note  on,  60 ;  attempt  at  wit,  of,  60 ; 
diarist  characterizes,  60;  allusion  to, 
118. 


198 


INDEX. 


Patten,  Miss,  of  Rhode  Island,  allusion 
to,  124. 

Peabody,  Mr.,  of  Exeter,  N.  H.,  diarist 
lodges  at  house  of,  100;  and  dines, 
101. 

Perkins,    ,    manages    a   dance    at 

Hingiiani,  54. 

Peterson,  Capt.,  of  packet  "  Rambler," 
172.  175. 

Phelps,  Henry,  graduate  of  Harvard 
College,  17S8,  155. 

Phi  Beta  Kappa  Society,  meeting  of,  21, 
25,  26;  elects  officers,  26;  allusion  to 
members  of,  27  ;  Bancroft,  Packard, 
and  Barker,  elected  members  of,  28 ; 
invites  diarist  to  speak  before  it, 
159;  diarist  delivers  oration  before, 
163;  allusion  to  meeting  of,  1789, 
170. 

Phillips,  John,  college  friend  of  diarist, 
20;  elected  treasurer  of  4>  B  K,  26; 
note  concerning,  26 ;  allusion  to, 
123,  124  ;  pronounces  salutatory  ora- 
tion at  Commencement,  1788,  153; 
in  list  of  graduates,  1788,  155;  allu- 
sion to,  101,  170. 

Phillips,  ^^ss,  allusion  to,  114,  139. 

Pickering,  John,  argues  for  ratification 
of  Federal  Constitution,  100  ;  diarist 
comments  thereon,  100 ;  note  on, 
100. 

Pickering,  Timothy,  William  Stedman 
lodges  with,  14. 

Pickman,  Benjamin  (Sr.),  allusion  to, 
102. 

Pickman,  Benjamin  (Jr.),  becomes  fel- 
low-student with  diarist  at  office  of 
Theophihis  Parsons,  102  ;  note  on, 
102 ;  allusion  to,  104,  107,  108,  109, 
110,  111,  114,  115,  120,  121,  129,  1.^0, 
131,  134,  135,  136,  137,  138,  140,  141, 
142,  144,  157,  160. 

Pitt,  William,  allusion  to,  9. 

"  Pleas  and  Pleadings,"  Bacon's,  dia- 
rist begins  perusal  of,  143,  158. 

"Pleas  of  the  Crown,"  William  Haw- 
kins's, diarist  takes  up,  134  ;  note  on, 
134;  continues  reading,  13G;  com- 
pletes reading,  140. 

Plymouth,  town  of,  allusion  to,  128, 
150. 

Poetry,  diarist's  dislike  for,  88. 

Point  Judith,  diarist  passes  on  voyage 
to  jSlew  York,  174. 


Popkin,  Rev.  John  S.,  allusion  to,  34. 

Porter,  Rev.  Huntington,  allusion  to, 
and  note  on,  137. 

Porter,  il/r.,  allusion  to,  18 ;  note  con- 
cerning, 18 ;  infant  child  of,  annoys 
diarist,  18. 

Portsmouth,  N.  IT.,  town  of,  allusion 
to,  30,  87,  42,  161. 

Pownalborough,  Me.,  town  of,  allusion 
to,  148,  149. 

Presbury,  Mary,  wife  of  Jonathan 
Greenleaf,  note,  132. 

Prescott,  James,  graduate  of  Harvard 
College,  1788,  155. 

Priestley,  Di:  Joseph,  diarist  reads 
work  by.  146,  156. 

Prince,  Miss,  allusion  to,  104 ;  charac- 
terization of,  105. 

Prout,  Lj'dia,  note  on,  94. 

Prout,  William  Welsted,  allusion  to, 
and  note  on,  94 ;  marries  Sally  Jen- 
kins, 142. 

Providence,  R.  I.,  diarist  visits,  on  jour- 
ney to  New  York,  170,  171 ;  descrip- 
tion of,  171,  172;  Supreme  Court  in 
session  at,  172. 

Putnam,  Samuel,  student  with  The- 
ophilus  Parsons,  15 ;  biographical 
note  concerning,  15;  allusion  to,  40, 
42,  44,  45,  40,  50,  60,  61,  62,  03,  67, 
69,  70,  71,  76,  81,  82,  84,  87,  88,  89, 
91,  98, 96,  97,  100, 102,  106,  107,  109  ; 
described  as  in  love,  109 ;  allusion 
to,  111,  112,  114,  116,  118;  diarist 
characterizes,  118;  allusion  to,  120, 
129,  132,  133,  135,  136,  137,  139,  140, 
157,  159,  160,  162,  163,  104,  165. 

Putuam,  Miss,  allusion  to,  93  ;  diarist 
meets,  and  characterizes,  98,  99 ; 
allusion  to,  100. 


Q. 

Quinctilian,  Mr.  Parsons  advises  diarist 

to  read,  64. 
Quincy,  town  of,  allusion  to,  9. 
Quincy,    Mrs.    Ann,  allusion    to,  22; 

biographical  note    concerning,    22 ; 

diarist  visits,  128,  145. 
Quincy,  Anna,  marries  John  Thaxter, 

53. 
Quincy,  Dorothy,  allusion  to,  83. 
Quincy,  Edmund,  allusion  to,  22. 


INDEX. 


199 


Quincy,  Col.  John,  allusion  to,  17,  53, 
55,  145. 

Quincy,  Mrs.  Josiah  (Jr.),  allusion  to, 
145. 

Quincy,  Lucy,  allusion  to,  10. 

Quincy,  Nancy,  allusion  to,  22  ;  note 
on,  22 ;  diarist  meets  at  Haverhill, 
47  ;  allusion  to,  as  having  been  ill, 
128. 

Quincy,  Norton,  "My  Uncle  Quincy," 
diarist  visits,  55;  note  on,  55;  allu- 
sion to,  and  note  on,  145  ;  Mrs.  Abi- 
gail Adams  visits,  152. 


R. 


"  Eambler,"  packet,  between  Newport 

and  New  York,  diarist  takes  passage 

on,  172. 
Eand,  Dr.,  of  Cambridge,  allusion  to, 

157. 
Read,  Mr.,  of  Salem,  diarist  visits,  129. 
Read,    Nathan,    resigns    tutorsliip    at 

Cambridge,   19;    biographical    note 

concerning,  19. 
Redington,  Mr.,  allusion  to,  63. 
Religion,  diarist's  comment  on,  161. 
Rice,   Col.  Natlian  (Jr.),  gives  dinner 

party  at  Hingham,  52 ;  note  on,  52  ; 

allusion  to,  53,  54. 
Rice,  P>.ev.  Nathan  (Sr.),  allusion  to,  52, 
Richmond  Hill,  residence  of  Vice-Presi- 
dent John  Adams,  in  New  York,  176. 
Roberts,  Miss,  allusion  to,  130,  161. 
Robertson's     "Charles     "V.,"     diarist 

reads,  30;  comments  upon,  30;  note 

concerning,  30,  32. 
Rochefoucauld,  Due   de  la,   quotation 

from,  158. 
Romain,  M.,  fellow  lodger  with  diarist 

at    Mrs.    Leathers's,    Newburyport, 

158;  allusion  to,  162,  165. 
Rousseau's       "  Confessions,"       diarist 

reads,  35;  his  comment  on,  36. 
Russell,    ,    of    Haverliill,    diarist 

visits,  47. 
Russell,  Daniel,  allusion  to,  108, 167. 


Sainneville,    Marquis    de,    dines    with 

Jolm  Adams  at  Braintree,  166. 
St.  John's  Day,  observance  of,  75. 


Salem,  town  of,  allusion  to,  61,  62,  111, 

115,  129,  166. 
Salisbury,  town  of,  allusion  to,  102,  114. 
Sanders,  Daniel  Clarke,    disputant   at 
Harvard  Commencement,  1788,  154  ; 
note  on,  154 ;  in  list  of  graduates,  155. 
Sandwich,  town  of,  allusion  to,  52. 
Sargeant.    Judge    Nathaniel    Peaslec, 
diarist    pays    a   visit    to,    13 ;     bio- 
graphical note  concerning,  13;  diarist 
dines  with,  18,  29 ;  allusion  to,  48,  55, 
121. 
Sawyer,  Dr.  Micajah,  diarist  visits,  104 ; 

note  on,  104;  allusion  to,  108,  110. 
Sawyer,  Mrs.  Micajah,  allusion  to,  and 

note  on,  104. 
Sawyer,  William,  allusion  to,  and  note 
on,    110;    characterization    of.    110; 
allusion   to,   114,    131;    graduate   of 
Harvard,  class  of  1788,  155. 
Sawyer,    William     (the    first    of  that 
name),  descendants  of,  note  on,  104. 
Sawyer's  Tavern,  see  Sohier's  Tavern. 
Searle,  George,  allusion  to,  note,  134. 
Searle,  Mrs.  George,  allusion  to,  134. 
"  Seasons,"  Thomson's,  quotation  from, 

13.3. 
Sedgwick,  Theodore,  member  of  Fed- 
eral Constitutional  Convention,  allu- 
sion to,  86. 
Selden,  Mrs.,  of  Virginia,  allusion  to, 

35. 
"Sensible,"   French    frigate,   conveys 
John  Adams  and  his  son  to  Amer- 
ica, 6 ;  John  Adams  returns  to  Eu- 
rope on,  7. 
"  Sentimental  Journey,"  Sterne's,  allu- 
sion to,  48. 
Sewall,  David,  Judge  of  Supreme  Court 
of  Massachusetts,  29 ;  allusion  to,  and 
note  on,  56;  allusion  to,  151. 
Sewall,  Stephen,  allusion  to,  102. 
Shakespeare,  "  Measure  for  Measure," 
quotation   from,   60 ;    diarist    reads 
historical    play    of,    84  ;      "  Twelfth 
Night,"      quotation       from,        87; 
"  Othello,"     quotation      from,     165 ; 
"  II    Henry    IV.,"   quotation    from, 
167;  allusion  to,  174. 
Shaw,  Capt.,  of  packet  "  Rambler,"  175. 
Shaw,   Rev.   John,   biographical    note 
concerning,  11;    allusion  to,  16,  18; 
diarist  visits  at  Haverliill,  47;  allu- 
sion to,  48,  49,  50,  63 ;  Thanksgiving 


200 


Day  sermon  of,  66 ;  allusion  to,  67, 
91,  100,  121,  145,  14G,  157,  103,  107. 

Shaw,  Mrs.,  allusion  to,  92,  145,  140, 
163. 

Shaw,  Josiah  C,  takes  part  in  a  Greek 
dialogue  at  Cambridge,  124. 

Shays's  Kebellion,  allusion  to,  9,  14; 
diarist  comments  on  leniency  shown 
to  participators  in,  33;  allusion  to, 
83. 

Sheep-stealing,  penalty  for,  41. 

Sheliane,  John,  on  trial  for  burglary  at 
Boston,  28 ;  diarist  listens  to  trial, 
and  comments  thereon,  28,  29;  con- 
victed and  sentenced  to  death,  38  ; 
diarist  comments  on  sentence,  33 ; 
diarist  comments  on  leniency  shown 
to  participators  in  Shays's  llebellion, 
33. 

Shenstone,  William,  allusion  to,  174. 

Sliute,  Rev.  Daniel,  at  ordination  of 
Hunry  Ware,  52;  note  on,  52. 

Siddons,  Mrs.  Sarah,  allusion  to,  103. 

Sigourney,  Mr.,  allusion  to,  118. 

Slave-trade,  Benjamin  Abbot  speaks  col- 
lege oration  on,  124  ;  produces  com- 
mercial prosperity  of  Newport  (R.  I.,) 
174. 

Sleighing  party,  diarist  goes  on,  87. 

Small-pox,  breaks  out  in  Newburyport, 
132. 

Smith,  Dr.  (of  Newburyport),  allusion 
to,  91,  93,  98,  109,  116. 

Smith,  Miss,  allusion  to,  93,  94  ;  diarist 
"makes  up"  a  misunderstanding 
with,  98;  allusion  to,  100,  116,  139. 

Smith,  Mrs.  Abigail  Adams,  diarist  al- 
ludes to,  44  ;  note  on,  44. 

Smith,  C.  C,  editor  of  Massachusetts 
Historical  Society,  8;  Adams's  diary 
placed  in  hands  of,  8 ;  reproduces 
diary  in  Proceedings  of  Society,  8. 

Smith,  Miss  Elizabeth,  daughter  of 
Deacon  Isaac,  diarist  visits  in  Bos- 
ton, 55 ;  note  on,  55 ;  allusion  to,  as 
"Betsey,"  140,  160. 

Smith,  .1/rs.  Elizabeth  Q.,  allusion  to,  10. 

Smith,  Rev.  Hezekiah,  diarist  alludes 
to,  17, 18;  biographical  note  concern- 
ing, 18;  allusion  to,  63. 

Smith,  Deacon  Isaac,  allusion  to,  25; 
note  concerning,  25;  note  concern- 
ing, 32;  death  of,  49;  note  concern- 
ing, 49. 


Smith,  Rev.  Isaac,  elected  librarian  of 
Harvard  College,  20;  biographical 
note  concerning,  20;  diarist  visits, 
125. 

Smith,  Miss  S.,  of  Sandwich,  partner 
of  diarist  at  a  dance  at  Hingham,  52. 

Smith  V.  Brown,  case  of,  38;  diarist  lis- 
tens to,  and  comments  on,  33. 

Smith,  William,  allusion  to,  32 ;  note 
on,  82 ;  allusion  to,  55 ;  diarist 
lodges  with,  56 ;  allusion  to,  166, 168. 

Sohier  (Sawyer),  William,  50. 

Sohier's  (Sawyer's)  Tavern,  New- 
buryport, diarist  visits  with  friends, 
30,  37,  42 ;  joins  sleighing  party  to, 
87  ;  diarist  visits  with  brother  Charles 
and  others,  90;  sleighing  party  to, 
94;  diarist  visits,  130,  134,  130,  141. 

Southbridge,  town  of,  allusion  to,  52. 

Sprague's,  W.  B.,  "  Annals  of  American 
Pulpit,"  quoted,  13. 

Spring,  Rev.  Gardiner,  allusion  to,  63. 

Spring,  Rev.  Samuel,  pastor  of  North 
Church,  Newburyport,  31 ;  diarist 
attends  lecture  by,  62  ;  note  on,  62, 
63;  diarist  criticises  and  character- 
izes, 63  ;  allusion  to,  68, 105, 108,  110, 

115,  132,  139,  158,  161. 

Stacey,  George,  allusion  to,  37  ;  note 
on,  37;  allusion  to,  41,  110,  111,  114, 

116,  121,  132,  137,  139,  142,  143,  157, 
158,  159,  160,  161,  162,  16-3,  164. 

Stage  lines,  note  concerning,  29. 

Stark,  Maj.  Caleb,  about  to  marry  Miss 
McKinstry,  48  ;  note  on,  48. 

Stark,  Maj.-Gen.  John,  allusion  to,  48. 

Stedman,  William,  diarist  alludes  to, 
14;  biographical  note  concerning, 
14  ;  allusion  to,  15,  24,  30,  37,  42,  56, 
57,  124,  128;  marries  Almy  Ellery, 
note,  172. 

Stewart,  Mr.,  fellow  passenger  with 
diarist  on  voyage  to  Newport,  175. 

Stiles,  Ezra,  President  of  Yule  College, 
diarist  meets  daughter  of,  at  New- 
port, 173 

Stone,  Michael,  Representative  in  Con- 
gress, allusion  to,  177. 

Storer,  Deacon  Ebenezer,  diarist  dines 
with,  55;  note  on,  55;  diarist  dines 
with,  144,  150. 

Story,  Rev.  Mr.,  preaches  at  Newbury- 
port, 102. 

Street,  Miss,  diarist  alludes  to,  22. 


INDEX. 


201 


Strong,  Caleb,  member  of  Federal  Con- 
stitutional Convention,  allusion  to,  86. 

Sturbridge,  town  of,  allusion  to,  25,  52. 

Suicide,  of  Ben.  Hooper,  89,  90;  diarist 
descants  upon  subject  of,  90. 

Sullivan,  Francis  S.,  Lectures  of,  dia- 
rist takes  up,  43 ;  note  on,  43 ;  allusion 
to,  and  criticism  of,  70,  71;  diarist 
completes  reading  of,  72. 

Sullivan,  Gov.  James,  counsel  in  case 
Smith  V.  Brown,  39 ;  note  on,  39 ; 
counsel  in  case  at  Cambridge,  5G ; 
anecdote  of,  56  ;  diarist  characterizes, 
56  ;  allusion  to,  143. 

Sullivan,  Gen.  John,  allusion  to,  30. 

Sullivan,  John,  Greek  dialogue  of,  with 
Thomas  B.  Adams,  at  Harvard  Ex- 
hibition, 146. 

Sumner,  Increase,  judge  of  the  Su- 
preme Court  of  Massachusetts,  29 ; 
allusion  to,  and  note  on,  66. 

Sweden,  diarist  recalls  his  visit  to,  93; 
note  on,  93. 

Swett,  Dr.  John  B.,  allusion  to,  13 ; 
Moses  Little,  student  in  office  of,  15; 
allusion  to,  30;  biographical  notice 
of,  30 ;  as  classmate  of  Tracy,  31 ; 
allusion  to,  44;  diarist  advises  with, 
65 ;  allusion  to,  68,  80,  82,  88,  104, 
130,  167. 

Swett,  ]\[rs.  Dr.,  characterized  by  dia- 
rist, 68,  69;  note  on,  68;  diarist  com- 
ments on,  82  ;  allusion  to,  104. 

Symmes,  Reo.  William,  allusion  to,  38 ; 
biographical  note  on,  38;  opposes 
Federal  Constitution,  .33,  48  ;  allusion 
to,  77 ;  allusion  to,  and  note  on,  167. 


T. 


Tappan,  Amos,  disputant  at  Harvard 
Commencement,  1788,  154;  in  list  of 
graduates,  1788,  155. 

Tappan,  Rev.  David,  preaches  at 
Newbury  port,  12;  diarist's  charac- 
terization of,  13 ;  biographical  note 
concerning,  12,  13 ;  pastor  at  West 
Newbury,  31 ;  classmate  of  John 
Tracy,  31 ;  preaches  at  Newbury- 
port,  115. 

Taunton,  town  of,  allusion  to,  55,  152. 

Taylor,  Miss,  of  Boston,  visits  at  New- 
buryport,  142. 


Thacher, ,  disputant   at    Harvard 

Exhibition,  146. 
Thanksgiving   Day,   diarist   observes, 

m. 

Thaxter,  Caleb,  of  Hin^ham,  diarist 
dines  with,  at  Hingham,  52 ;  note  on, 
52;  diarist  sups  with,  54;  diarist 
rides  to  Boston  in  company  with,  55. 

Thaxter,  John  (Sr.),  of  Hingham,  dia- 
rist visits,  53;  note  on,  53. 

Thaxter,  John  (Jr.),  of  Haverhill,  allu- 
sion to,  13,  K),  17 ;  biographical  note 
concerning,  17;  allusion  to,  49;  con- 
vivial scene  at  house  of,  50 ;  allusion 
to,  51;  is  married,  63;  allusion  to, 
74,  91,  92,  100,  121,  143,  157,  167. 

Thaxter,  Mrs.  John,  of  Haverhill,  allu- 
sion to,  66, 121. 

Thaxter,  Quincy,  allusion  to,  and  note 
on,  54  ;  allusion  to,  152. 

Thompson,  Thomas,  allusion  to,  14; 
opposes  his  son's  desire  to  read  law, 
31;  diarist  comments  thereon,  31; 
allusion  to,  130. 

Thompson,  Thomas  W.,  diarist  alludes 
to,  14;  biographical  note  concerning, 
14, 15  ;  fellow  student  with  diarist  at 
Newburyport,  30;  engages  in  teach- 
mg  school,  31 ;  father  opposes  his 
intent  to  read  law,  31 ;  diarist  com- 
ments thereon,  31 ;  allusion  to,  33, 
40,  42,  44,  45,  46,  60,  62,  63, 67,  71,  81. 
84,  93,  94,  96,  100,  102,  106,  108,  109, 
110,  112,  114,  116,  117,  118,  119,  120, 
130,  131,  132,  133,  135,  136,  137,  138, 
139,  140,  141,  157,  159,  160,  161,  162, 
10.5. 

Thomson's  "  Seasons,"  quotation  from, 
loo. 

Thurston,  Rev.  Benjamin,  member  of 
New  Hampshire  Federal  Constitu- 
tional Convention,  101 ;  diarist  criti- 
cises speech  of,  101 ;  note  on,  101. 

Tillotson,  John,  Archbishop,  allusion  to 
sermon  by,  and  note  on,  131. 

"Timothy  Dexter  House,"  allusion  to, 
83. 

Titcomb,  Gen.  Jonathan,  reviews  troops, 
47,  48  ;  note  on,  47  ;  elected  delegate 
to  Mass.  Federal  Constitutional  Con- 
vention, 64. 

"  Tom  Jones,"  Fielding's,  diarist's  criti- 
cism of,  10. 

Topsfield,  town  of,  allusion  to,  37. 


202 


INDEX. 


Tovrnsend,  Horatio,  fellow  sturicntwith 
diarist  at  Newburyport,  30:  bio- 
graphical note  concerning,  30 ;  dia- 
rist dines  with,  32;  allusion  to,  33; 
diarist  walks  with,  34;  allusion  to, 
35, 36,  37,  38,  41,  42,  4G,  47,  48,  49,  50 ; 
diarist  cliaracterizes,  61  ;  allusion  to, 
62,  63,  64,  65,  66,  67,  68,  71,  75,  77,  81, 
82,  84,  85,  88,  93,  94,  95,  96,  97,  98,  99, 
100,  102,  104,  105,  106,  107,  108,  109, 
110,  114,  115;  admitted  to  practice, 
110;  diarist  cliaracterizes,  116;  allu- 
sion to,  142,  143,  149,  158,  160,  IGl, 
162,  163,  164. 

Townsend's  Tavern,  Newport,  diarist 
stops  at,  172. 

Tracy,  Hannah,  allusion  to,  83. 

Tracy,  John,  of  Newburyport,  diarist 
visits,  31;  biographical  note  on,  31 ; 
diarist  dines  with,  35 ;  note  on,  35 ; 
allusion  to,  36,  60,  65,  83,  98, 141, 142, 
143,  163. 

Tracy,  Mrs.  John,  diarist's  comment 
on,  35,  36. 

Tracy,  Nathaniel,  brother  of  John,  allu- 
sion to,  31,  39,  65,  111;  note  on,  111; 
comment  on,  112  ;  allusion  to,  163. 

Tracy,  Capt.  Patrick,  allusion  to,  83, 
111. 

Training  Day,  diarist  comments  on,  32. 

Tread  well,  John  Dexter,  college  friend 
of  diarist,  123;  graduate  of  Harvard 
College,  1788,  155. 

"Treatise  on  Evidence,"  Sir  Geoffrey 
Gilbert,  diarist  reads,  127. 

"Tristram  Sliandy,"  allusion  to,  106. 

Trowbridge,  Judge  Edmund,  allusion 
to,  and  note  on,  147. 

Tucker,  Miss  Alice,  guest  with  diarist 
at  Miss  Cazneau's,  67  ;  diarist  char- 
acterizes, 67  ;  allusion  to,  71 ;  note 
of,  on  Rev.  Elijah  Parish,  71 ;  char- 
acterization by,  of  Samuel  Moody,  76; 
characterization  by,  of  MissCazneau, 
77  ;  characterization  by,  of  William 
Farnham,  108  ;  characterization  by, 
of  Nathaniel  Tracy,  112. 

Tucker,  Rev.  Dr.  John,  meeting-house 
of,  34  ;  note  on,  34  ;  allusion  to,  46,  48, 
49;  note  on,  49;  diarist  criticises  con- 
gregation of,  50 ;  allusion  to,  62,  05  ; 
sermon  of,  commented  upon,  63 ; 
allusion  to,  82  ;  sermon  of,  commented 
upon,  95;  allusion  to,  111,  103,  167. 


Tudor,  Williara,  counsel  in  Shchane 
trial,  29 ;  biographical  note  concern- 
ing, 29. 

Tufts,  Dr.  Cotton,  allusion  to,  10 ;  note 
concerning,  10;  allusion  to,  21,  22, 
23,  5(i,  60,  146,  170. 

Tufts,  Cotton  (Jr.),  marries  Dorothy 
Brooks,  43  ;  note  on,  43. 

Tufts,  Dorothy,  diarist  present  at  mar- 
riage of,  to  George  Ouiorne,  43; 
note  on,  43. 

Tufts,  Samuel,  allusion  to,  15,  16,  S3, 
37,  40,  42 ;  diarist  present  at  marriage 
of  daughter  of,  43 ;  note  on,  43 ; 
allusion  to,  44,  90  ;  diarist  dines  with, 
126 ;  calls  upon,  130 ;  allusion  to, 
103,  167. 

Tufts,  Dr.  Simon,  widow  of,  alluded 
to,  19. 

Turner,  Charles,  graduate  of  Plarvard 
College,  1788,  155. 

Tyng,  Dudley  Atkins  assumes  name  of, 
34  ;  appointed  Collector  of  Port  of 
Newburyport,  35. 

Tyngsborough,  town  of,  allusion  to,  34. 


Underwood,  Nathan,  graduate  of  Har- 
vard College,  1788,  155. 


Vassall,  Col.  John,  allusion  to,  note,  147. 

Vassall,  Leonard,  dwelling  of,  prepared 
for  occupanc3'  of  John  Adams  on  his 
return  from  the  American  mission  at 
St.  James,  126, 127 ;  note  on,  126,  127. 

Vattel's  "Law  of  Nature  and  of 
Nations,"  diarist  peruses,  32;  his 
comment  thereon,  33,  37. 

Vauglian,  Mr.,  allusion  to,  168. 

Virginia,  ratifies  the  Federal  Constitu- 
tion, 150. 

"  Vision,  The,"  poem  by  diarist,  quota- 
tion from,  114,  116,  120. 

Vose  sisters,  Sarah,  Margaret,  Dolly, 
Nancy,  Naomi,  note  on,  54. 

Vose,  Solomon,  allusion  to,  and  note 
on,  6i. 


INDEX. 


203 


W. 

Waltharn,  town  of,  allusion  to,  27. 

Ware,  Rev.  Henry,  cliosen  tutor  at 
Harvard  College,  19 ;  declines,  and 
accepts  call  as  pastor  at  Hingham,  19 ; 
biographical  note  concerning,  19; 
elected  president  of  'I'  B  K,  25,  26 ; 
allusion  to,  27  ;  ordained  and  settled 
at  Hingham,  51,  52,  53 ;  allusion  to, 
128 ;  orator  at  Harvard  Commence- 
ment, 1788,  154. 

Warland's,  of  Cambridge,  allusion  to, 
27,  lOG. 

Warren,  George,  visits  diarist,  151. 

Warren,  Harry,  allusion  to,  150. 

Warren,  Gen.  James,  of  Braintree,  allu- 
sion to,  128 ;  criticism  of,  150. 

Warren,  Mrs.  Gen.,  of  Braintree,  allu- 
sion to,  128,  148,  150,  151. 

Warren,  Dr.  (Gen.)  Joseph,  Samuel 
Adams,  Jr.,  studies  medicine  with, 
87. 

Warren,  Joseph  (Jr.),  son  of  Gen. 
Josepli  Warren,  allusion  to,  22; 
note  concerning,  22. 

Wasliington,  George,  allusion  to,  9,  47 ; 
John  Phillips  has  college  oration 
on,  12.3;  dines  with  Vice-President 
Adams,  176 ;  visits  New  England, 
178,  179. 

Waterhouse,  Benjamin,  diarist  meets, 
at  Cambridge,  124,  125 ;  note  on, 
124,  125 ;  allusion  to,  144,  166. 

AVaterman,  Foster,  disputant  at  Har- 
vard Exhibition,  1788,  146. 

Waters,  Mr.,  visitor  at  Richard 
Cranch's,    127. 

Waterston,  Rev.  R.  C,  alhision  to,  84. 

Watts,  Miss  J.  C,  editorial  work  of,  on 
Adams's  diary,  7. 

Weather,  New  England,  diarist  com- 
ments upon,  33. 

Webber,  Samuel,  note  concerning,  19; 
allusion  to,  76,  138. 

Webster,  Daniel,  correspondence  of, 
referred  to,  10. 

Webster,  Rev.  Samuel,  preaches  at 
Newburyport,  141 ;  note  on,  141,  163. 

Weir  River,  Gen.  Lincoln's  mill  on,  54. 

Welcli,  Francis,  biograpliical  note  con- 
cerning, 11  ;  allusion  to,  150,  168. 

Welch,  Mrs.,  allusion  to,  146. 

Weld,  Rev.  Ezra,  diarist  alludes  to,  22 ; 


biographical  note  concerning,  22 ; 
allusion  to,  104,  127. 

Welsh,  Dr.  Thomas,  allusion  to,  25 ; 
note  concerning,  25. 

Wendell,  Mr.,  diarist  meets  and  char- 
acterizes, 97 ;  eccentric  acts  of,  98. 

Wendell,  Miss,  allusion  to,  136,  139. 

Wenhara,  town  of,  alluded  to,  16. 

West,  Rev.  Dr.  Steplien,  allusion  to,  63. 

West,  Rev.  Sanmel,  classmate  of  Jolm 
Adams,  visits  latter,  153;  note  on, 
153. 

West,  Samuel,  graduate  of  Harvard 
College,  1788,  155. 

West  Church,  Boston,  Rev.  Simeon 
Howard  pastor  at,  28. 

Wetmore,  William,  counsel  in  Shehane 
trial,  28;  biographical  note  concern- 
ing, 28,  20. 

Weymouth,  town  of,  diarist  visits,  21 ; 
allusion  to,  128,  146. 

Whipping,  punishment  for  crime,  40. 

White,  John,  diarist  dines  with,  12 ; 
biographical  note  concerning,  12 ; 
diarist  visits,  63,  66,  92,  121,  167. 

White,  Leonard,  biographical  note  con- 
cerning, 12;  diarist  visits,  16,  18; 
allusion  to,  47,  48,  50,  63,  66,  87,  88, 
91,  92;  marries  Mary  Dalton,  104; 
allusion  to,  121,  157. 

Wibird,  Rev.  Anthony,  diarist  alludes 
to,  22;  biographical  note  concerning, 
22 ;  diarist  visits,  55 ;  listens  to  sermon 
by,  125,  126,  145,  146,  150;  diarist 
criticises,  151 ;  listens  to,  152,  168. 

Wier,  Robert,  graduate  of  Harvard 
College,  1788,  155. 

Wigglesworth,  Dr.  Edward,  diarist  al- 
ludes to,  15;  biographical  note  con- 
cerning, 15;  allusion  to,  24,  28,56, 
83 ;  note  on,  107  ;  allusion  to,  124, 155. 

Wigglesworth,  Margaret  (Peggy),  allu- 
sion to,  15,  16,  56,  125. 

Wigglesworth,  Sarah,  allusion  to,  and 
note  on,  107. 

Wilkins,  Mrs.,  fellow  passenger  with 
diarist  on  voyage  to  New  York,  175. 

Willard,  Joseph,  President  of  Harvard 
College,  note  concerning,  10 ;  diarist's 
criticism  of,  10, 24 ;  allusion  to,  28,  70 ; 
presides  at  Commencement  of  1788, 
153;  checks  applause  at  Commence- 
ment exercises,  154 ;  confers  degrees, 
154. 


£04 


INDEX. 


Willard,  Sophia,  allusion  to,  2-1;  note 
concerning,  24. 

Williams,  Dr.,  allusion  to,  49. 

Williams,  Keuel,  alluvsion  to,  note,  149 ; 
allusion  to,  16G. 

Williams,  Rev.  Samuel  (Sr.),  note  on, 
5G ;  allusion  to,  128. 

Williams,  Samuel  (Jr.),  classmate  of 
diarist,  allusion  to,  5G;  note  on,  56; 
allusion  to,  62,  83,  128. 

Willis,  Capt.  Benjamin,  diarist  alludes 
to,  18 ;  biograpliical  note  conoernmg, 
18. 

Wilmington,  town  of,  diarist  alludes  to, 
11;  visits,  18;  dines  at,  51;  diarist 
passes  through,  157. 

Winnisimet  ferry,  allusion  to,  165. 

Winslow,  Rev.  Edward,  note,  174 ; 
daughters  of,  are  fellow  passengers 
with  diarist  on  voyage  to  New  York, 
174. 

Winslow,  Mr.,  of  Newburyport,  allu- 
sion to,  41,  49. 

Winthrop,  Hon.  James,  resigns  as 
librarian  at  Harvard,  19;  biograph- 
ical note  concerning,  19  ;  one  of  the 
founders  of  the  Massachusetts  His- 
torical Society,  19 ;  allusion  to,  24, 
111. 

Winthrop,  Thomas  L.,  Lieut.-Gou., 
allusion  to,  note,  149. 


Wit,  diarist  discusses,  CO. 
Witherspoon,  Rev.  Dr.  John,  allusion 

to,  33. 
Woburn,     town     of,     diarist     passes 

through,  157. 
Wood's    "Institutes   of  the  Laws  of 

England,"  reference  to,  107;  diarist 

reads,  140;  note  on,  140. 
Woodward,  Mr.,  of  Braintree,  allusion 

to,  166. 
Wright,  Mr.,  travelling  companion  of 

diarist  on  journey  to  Providence,  171, 

and  to  New  York,  175. 
Wright,  5(V  Martin,  "  Law  of  Tenures" 

of,   diarist  reads,   43;  note  on,  43; 

diarist  completes  reading  of,  72. 
Wyer,  Capt.  William,  of  Newburyport, 

zealous  for  adoption  of  Federal  Con- 
stitution,  46;  note  on,  46;  allusion 

to,  72. 
Wyetli,  Tapley,  allusion  to,  and  note 

on,  122. 


"  Yorick's  Secret,"  allusion  to,  48. 
Yorick's  Sermons,  allusion  to,  and  note 

on,  70. 
Young,  Dr.  David,  seeks  to  prosecute 

participants   in    Shays's    liebellion, 

for  personal  injuries,  160. 


